


Words Can Kill

by PerfectlyPiper



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Bullying, Cyber Bullying, Drug Dealing, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Mental Institutions, Multi, Physical Abuse, Self-Harm, Suicide Attempt, Torture, Underage Drug Use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:47:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 11
Words: 24,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25935403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerfectlyPiper/pseuds/PerfectlyPiper
Summary: Coming from a poor estate background, Rose Tyler never expected to be accepted into a top private school because of her artistic skill and talent. (She didn't even know about the competition until a Professor from the school had seen it, all because her Dad had submitted it in the first place.) In this type of school though, Rose quickly realizes who her true friends are, and that sometimes, words can kill ...
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

“Are you ready to go, sweetheart?”

Rose stood in front of her bedroom mirror, looking one more time at her reflection. She was wearing a brand new school uniform, with a new sewn on patch proudly displaying the name of the private school. She felt very out of place wearing this, considering that her and her family weren’t exactly well off. It was a well known fact that she was born and raised on the Powell Estate, one of the poorest and roughest in the neighbourhood, so it was a big surprise when Rose received her acceptance letter to one of the highest private schools in the region, after a professor had spotted one of her art submission for an online competition.

And here she was, ready – kind of –, for her big day.

“Coming!” Rose sighed, grabbing her backpack and slinging it over her shoulder, tightening her ponytail for extra measure, and to give her a moral boost. She turned the light off in her room, and met her Dad in the hallway, who was full to bursting with pride as he looked her up and down.

“My little girl is all grown up!” He beamed, hugging her tightly in his arms. “Your Mum would be so proud of you. Are you hungry? We’ve got time to grab something on the way.”

Rose shook her head, feeling sick enough already. “No thanks, I’ll get something at lunch.”

“Alright, but you’d better eat something later,” he jokingly warned, pointing a “threatening” finger at her. “I know how you are about skipping meals. Tony, get your stuff together. I’m giving you a lift this time to make sure you’re not late again.”

“It wasn’t my fault last time!” Tony – Rose’s ten year old brother – insisted, tired of defending himself, but obeying his father all the same. “Why is Rose getting all this special treatment, anyway?”

“Rose is going to a school where she can hone in on her talent, you’ve yet to find yours.” Pete chuckled, opening the door to let his children leave the flat first so that he could lock it. “And before you comment on that, video games do not count as a talent.”

~

Rose was quiet in the car, even more so after Tony was dropped off. She sunk lower in the seat as they pulled up by her old school, not wanting to be seen by her old friends. They already thought that she’d abandoned them by moving away. Her Dad tried to comfort her, knowing how nervous she was.

“You’ll be absolutely fine, love,” he assured her, pulling into the car park. “You’ve been given a great opportunity to really succeed here. Most kids from the estate will never get a chance like this, so embrace it. It’ll be all scary at first, but you’ll soon settle in and make lots of new friends.”

“But I don’t need new friends,” Rose protested meekly. “I like my old friends.”

“Just give it a chance, yeah?” Pete begged with a heavy sigh, running a hand through his untidy hair. “Give it a month. If you still don’t like it after a month, then we can talk about going back, OK? Fair deal?”

Eventually, Rose relented. “Fair deal.”

“I’ll be seeing your Mum this evening,” he began apprehensively, his hand squeezing the steering wheel just that little bit tighter. “You could come with me? She’s been asking to see you.”

“Dad –”

“It’s not scary in there, I promise.” He assured her. “It’s a secure, mental facility, there’s doctors and nurses on sight twenty four seven. It’s a safe place, and it doesn’t look like a hospital, it’s a comfortable home. She’s happy there, and most importantly she’s getting the help that she needs. She just wants to see you.”

“I’ll think about it.” Rose compromised with a small smile. “I’d better go, I’ll see you later.”

Pete leaned over to hug her tightly. “I’m so proud of you, sweetheart. Have a good day, love.”

~

When Rose had entered the back entrance (so not to bring herself too much attention), the bell had just gone, with the students all hurrying to their classes – most likely registration –. She made her way to the principals office as quickly as possible, ignoring the murmurs and whispers around her. She gave her name at the desk, and was introduced to Principal Miller, who took her to her registration room, which was on the second floor and the third room on the left. There were students already in the room, some sat alone, and a rowdy group sat at the back, lounging casually on the chairs and tables.

Principal Miller cleared her throat, immediately getting the students attention, as they scrambled to the appropriate seats. “Good morning, students.”

“Good morning, Principal Miller.”

“You have a new student joining your class today, her name is Rose Tyler. I would like somebody to volunteer to be Rose’s buddy, to help her settle in and make her feel comfortable. Which one of you would like to do that?”

There was a deafening silence. In that moment, Rose wished that the world would swallow her hole.

Finally, one of the girls at the back, probably one of the popular girls, stuck up her hand. “I’ll do it, Principal Miller.”

“Thank you Alyssa. Rose, if you’d take a seat next to Alyssa, she’ll show you around today. Have a good day, everyone.”

Rose was left alone, and stood awkwardly in the doorway until Alyssa encouraged her to come over. She hesitantly went to the desk, where another girl sat next to her, feet propped up on the desk itself. She didn’t move when Rose cleared her throat.

“Move your fucking backside, Tiffany.” Alyssa snapped, giving her “friend” a shove.

“But I always sit here.” Tiffany complained, reluctantly getting to her feet, shoving Rose to the side roughly with her shoulder.

“Not anymore, bitch. Rose sits here now.” Alyssa threw a dazzling smile at Rose who sat down intrepidly, keeping her bag close to her. “Now that that’s settled, let me introduce myself. My name’s Alyssa Monroe, and I’m here because I’m brilliant at acting, and I hope to be the next Marilyn Monroe. Why are you here?”

For a moment, Rose was speechless. “Um, I’m good at art.”

“Oh really? I’m good at art too.” Alyssa squealed in delight. “What do you like to draw?”

“I like to draw people.”

“Can I see some of your work?”

“I guess so.” Rose didn’t like to show off her work, she didn’t even know about this online competition until her Dad told her that he’d uploaded it himself. She pulled her little A5 leather bound notebook out of her bag, one that was struggling to close because it’d been used so much, and placed it on the table. She tried not to react when Alyssa grabbed it with her long nails, and carelessly began flipping through the different entries.

“It’s good.” Alyssa sniffed finally, pushing the book back to her. “But I can do better. I can teach you if you’d like? Hey, I’ll be the next Marilyn Monroe, and you could be the next Money.”

Rose couldn’t help but snort in disbelief. “I think you mean Monet? As in Claude Monet, one of the world’s most famous artists?”

Alyssa shrugged it off. “Money, Monet, same thing. When we’re done in here I’ll show you where your classes will be. Most of the time we’re all in the same group. You can sit with us at lunch too. What’s your number? I can help if you ever get lost.”

Rose blushed, tucking her book back into her bag. “I don’t have a phone.”

“You don’t have a phone? How do you not have a phone? Everybody has one.”

“I’ve asked for one for my birthday.” Rose said, hoping that it’d get Alyssa off her back. She did want a phone, but her Dad couldn’t afford it with the two jobs he was already working to keep him, her and her brother afloat. “My birthday’s in April, that’s not too far away.”

“You’ve got to get a phone, how do you live without one?”

~

It didn’t take Rose very long to learn that Alyssa was at the top of the hierarchy within the school. Whenever the others heard her heels clacking on the floor, they parted so that she could pass. Tiffany was Alyssa’s “right hand man”, carrying her bag and books for her. Rose offered to help Tiffany, who at the time looked grateful, but Alyssa insisted that Tiffany should do it since it was her job. The girls went about the day, with Alyssa showing Rose around the school, introducing her to the popular crowd, even inviting her to join them in the cafeteria at lunch.

At lunch, since Pete never had any spare money, Rose quickly handed the woman behind the till her free meal ticket when Alyssa wasn’t looking (even though Tiffany did), and followed Alyssa to the table where she and her friends usually sat. 

“So Rose, where are you from?” One of Alyssa’s friends – Matthew Logan – asked, taking a bite of his sandwich.

“I’m from Hackney.” Rose mumbled, a light blush forming across her cheeks. “It’s not a very big area, not like central London, but it’s home. How come you’re all here? What’s your guys’ ‘special talents’?”

Unsurprisingly, Matthew – Matt he preferred – was all about sports. He was on the lacrosse team which was his main focus, but he also was a skilled diver and did football part time. His best friend and partner in crime James Noble however, was the polar opposite. He was quieter and seemed to be more focused on his actual studies, but genuinely enjoyed science and astrology. Of course, Alyssa reminded everybody yet again how she was to be the next Marilyn Monroe, whereas Tiffany thrived in arithmetics and could play the piano flawlessly. 

The rest of the day passed without anything exciting happening. Rose soon settled into her classes and became more relaxed around her new circle of “friends”. Maybe her Dad was right, maybe it wouldn’t be as bad as she expected.

~

Rose didn’t go to see her Mum that evening, even though she felt bad for turning her Dad down, she just wasn’t ready. It scared her, seeing her Mum in that sort of environment. Tony went instead, with Pete promising to pick up a pizza on the way home. Whilst she waited, Rose made a start on her homework. She already had an art project that focused around her family tree. Unfortunate, but true. There was nothing in the rule book that said she’d have to be accurate, she could always make something up.

Just as she was getting into the depths of her story, the door opened with Pete and Tony piling through. To her surprise, Pete placed a square shaped parcel beside her on the table. 

“What’s this?”

Pete smirked knowingly, getting plates and napkins for the pizza. “Call it a ‘well done for getting into a top school’ and an early birthday present. I’m sure you’ll like it.”

With her curiosity piqued, Rose tore off the wrapping paper, her jaw dropping. It was a phone, her own phone. It was the newest version of the iPhone, and it was pink. She launched herself at her Dad in the kitchen, hugging him tightly.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! I thought you said we couldn’t afford it.” She reminded him, biting her lip anxiously.

“Don’t you worry about that.” Pete assured her. “Just be grateful that you have it. I thought it would come in handy if anything, especially with you going out and about and whatnot. You can keep in contact with me if you needed a lift. It does have internet access on it, all I ask is that you’re responsible and don’t go on any inappropriate websites.”

Rose couldn’t believe her luck. Her first day at her new school, and to top it all off, she had a new phone! She couldn’t wait to show Alyssa tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

Alyssa squealed with excitement when Rose showed her the new phone. “Oh my gosh, you actually got one! How? Oh my God, now I can finally add you to the group chat! How did you even get it?”

“My Dad surprised me last night, he called it a ‘congratulatory and an early birthday present’. My little brother was pissed though, he was so jealous. What’s this app called again?” Rose followed Alyssa’s instructions as she downloaded the app, eventually adding her new friends as well as accepting the invitation to join their group chat. At that point however, their tutor walked in for registration, so the girls had to put their phones away and focus.

~

At lunchtime, Rose grabbed a plate of macaroni cheese and a side of apple slices with bottled water, and went to take a seat next to Alyssa. Tiffany was sat on the other side, with the boys sat across from them. It was then that Rose got a good look at what the others talked about, and was shocked by what she saw.

Alyssa: OMG, did you see what Ellie Morgan got up to this weekend?

Tiffany: Let me guess, she whored herself around the neighborhood?

James: C’mon, Tiff, that’s not a nice thing to say.

Matt: She did look kinda cute though, that ass of hers is SO fine. ;)

Alyssa: Why is it that guys just think with their dicks instead of their brains?

Tiffany: They don’t have brains, that’s why!

Matt: I’d totally “do” her, if y’know what I mean, intoxicated or not.

James: Dude, that’s so inappropriate. Apparently there’s somebody at parties that’s spiking drinks, so you guys should be careful this weekend.

Rose looked up from the chat, feeling bad for Ellie Morgan, whoever that was. “What’s happening this weekend?”

“Matt’s throwing a party at his place,” James told her kindly, a shy smile on his face. “You can come if you’d like?”

“Oh my God I have the perfect idea!” Alyssa squealed, making the boys wince with her high pitched tone. “Why don’t Tiffany and I come to yours so that we can get ready, and then we can go together?”

Rose bit her lip, unsure as to what her Dad would say. “I dunno about that, I’d have to ask my Dad if I can go first. I’m only fourteen.”

“There’s no alcohol involved,” Tiffany lied with a dramatic eye roll. “If that’s what you’re worried about. We’re all responsible around here, apart from him.” She added jokingly, nodding in Matt’s direction.

“You bitch.” Matt grinned, playfully throwing his paper straw at her. “Seriously though, your Daddy’s got nothing to worry about. You’ll be safe with us, I promise.”

Rose glanced around at her friends, and nodded. “Alright, I’ll ask him.”

~

That evening, after they had finished there dinner, Rose had her art project spread across the dining table. She was drawing individual self-portraits of her family members, her Dad was on his laptop doing some work, and Tony was, as predicted, playing video games. Even though Rose was focused, her mind was all over the place, worrying about how her Dad would react to asking about the party. There was no time like the present.

“Hey Dad?”

“Yes, love?” He responded, not looking up from his computer.

“I’ve been invited to a party this weekend, can I go?”

This time, Pete closed the lid of the laptop. “Whose party is it?”

“It’s at Matt’s house, but Alyssa will be there with me, and there’s no alcohol involved. And it’ll be chaperoned.” The last part was made up of course, but Pete didn’t need to know that.

“I don’t like how it’s at a boys house,” Pete explained reasonably. “You barely know these kids. Do I get to meet any of them?”

“If you let me go then Alyssa and Tiffany can come round here, she suggested that so we could get ready together. You could meet them then?”

“When’s the party?”

“Saturday night.”

“I’ll think about it.”

Rose was happy with that response, knowing that he would follow through. She was soon distracted by a notification from the group chat.

Alyssa: Rose, are you there?

Rose: I’m here. What’s up?

Tiffany: Have you seen your profile page?

Rose: No. Why?

Alyssa: You didn’t write this, did you? inserts screenshot

Rose had a look at the screenshot, and saw that it was her profile page. She hadn’t really posted anything apart from sharing videos, but then she saw it. She zoomed in on the comment, apparently written by her, and was horrified.

I’m a naughty girl, I like it when people spank me.

Rose: I never wrote this. I’ve not even been online until now.

Matt: So you don’t like it when people spank you? :(

Rose: Matt! I do NOT. Somebody else wrote this, not me! What do I do?!

James: You can report it. Go to the post and report it, say that you were hacked and get it taken down. Don’t look at the comments.

Rose: Why not?

James: They’re not very nice to read.

But it was too late. Rose was reading the comments, and her cheeks were burning with embarrassment. These were comments by people she didn’t even know.

Daniel: It’s always the quiet ones that like to spanked. ;)

Greg: Finally, there’s a dirty girl that isn’t scared to show it.

Kai: I’d like to spank you. Message me and we can arrange it. ;)

Tiffany: Why do the sluts always have to boast about it? Keep your fucking legs closed.

Alyssa: Are you OK?

Rose: No. I’ve just read the comments. And I’m getting more! Hey Tiffany, there’s no need for name calling. I’m not a slut. I’ve never even had a boyfriend before, so how can I be a slut?

Tiffany: Whether you’ve had a boyfriend or not, I don’t give a shit. To me you’re a slut. Deal with it.

James: Shut up, Tiffany. Nobody likes you. You’re so miserable all the time and you bring everybody else down too. You’re not helping.

Tiffany: Shut the fuck up, James Noble. You never speak at school, why bother now?

Alyssa: Rose, it’ll be alright, yeah? Just report it like James suggested. Rose?

Rose had turned her phone off, no longer wanting to be involved. She was too distraught, too embarrassed, even though she’d never written the damned post. She cleared up the dining table of her things, and said goodnight to her Dad and brother, slamming her bedroom door shut and throwing herself on her bed, bursting into tears.

It wasn’t long after that her Dad knocked on the door. “Rose? Can I come in?” She mumbled that he could and he opened the door, sitting beside her on the bed. “What happened, sweetheart?”

Rose let out an audible sob, grabbing her phone to show him. “Alyssa told me that this had been posted to my profile, but I never posted it. Somebody else did. And now people I don’t even know are commenting all sorts of crap that’s not true.”

Pete read her post, and the comments underneath, his expression turning to that of anger and disgust. “You need to report this, and get it taken down. I’d also suggest making your profile private, so you only add on people you actually know. We’ll get it sorted, alright? Don’t you worry. Do you fancy some hot chocolate?”

Rose nodded, still tearful, but smiling gratefully. “Thanks Dad. I’m going to have a shower and get ready for bed.”

Pete left her to it, and went to the kitchen to make the hot chocolate. “Time to get off there, Tony. You need to make a start on your homework.”

Usually, Tony would kick up a fuss, but he surprisingly turned it off without a word, and did as he was told. “Why was Rose so upset?”

“Somebody hacked her online profile and commented something vile, and now she’s getting horrible comments because of it.” Pete was quick to notice the colour draining from his son’s face, and saw how incredibly shifty he’d become. “Tony, what’s the matter?”  
“Nothing!” Tony stammered quickly. A little too quickly for Pete’s liking.

“Do you know something about this?” Tony’s silence was an answer enough for him. “I think you and I should have a talk.”

~

Rose was towel drying her hair when there was another knock on her door. “Come in.” She called, and wasn’t expecting Tony to be there, Pete’s hand on his shoulder, leading his son in the room. “What’s going on?”

“Your brother has something to say to you.” Pete explained, nudging his son. “Go on, tell her.”

“Tell me what?”

Tony looked terrified, and rightfully so. He breathed in deeply, and without letting it go, he rambled. “I was the one who hacked your profile and said that you liked to be spanked.”

“WHAT? Why? Why would you do that?”

“I was jealous, OK? I was jealous and annoyed that you were getting all of this attention, and when Dad gave you a phone I snapped. I’m sorry!”

“I could kill you right now!” Rose screamed, furious that her only brother would go and betray her like that. “Your lucky that Dad’s standing behind you otherwise I’d be on your ass! You fucking asshole! Do you not realise that people are commenting a load of shit now because of your stupid post? ‘Cause you’re a jealous little boy, I’m now getting the brunt of it. Fuck you, you little shit!”

“Are you not gonna ground her for swearing?” Tony demanded his father, quite insulted.

“No, not this time, buddy. You asked for it, so you can deal with the consequences. And to add to that list, you’ll not be playing your video games for a month. And you won’t be able to hang out with any of your friends after school for a month either, now get to bed.” Pete waited for Tony to go to his room and for the door to shut, before turning back to his daughter. “Feel better?”

“I can’t believe he did that to me!” Rose carried on, still enraged.

“Tell your friends that they can come over on Saturday. I reckon you deserve it after what Tony did.”

~

It was only day five of her first week at the private school, and Rose was already frowned upon by her peers. She couldn’t really settle to sleep after her ordeal, and instead read the comments following the post. She’d reported it, but it was still up there for the world to see. She dreaded going into school the next day, and didn’t really want to deal with the hate.

But she had no choice. Her Dad told her to ignore the comments, and to keep her head held high, but that was easier said than done. Rose arrived at school half an hour before the bell was due to go, and was gathering what she needed from her locker. Other students passed her, whispering, giggling and pointing in her direction. She shook her head and tried her best to ignore it, and gasped when a boy from another year was shoved into her, knocking the books out of her hands and onto the floor.

“Watch where you’re going, slut!”

Rose growled, gritting her teeth so that she didn’t shoot back an insult, and bent down to gather her books once again. She jumped when another hand reached out to help her, and she looked up to find James there, passing her a book. “Thanks.”

“No problem.”

“You’re here early.”

“So are you.”

“I thought I’d avoid the stares in the corridor if I came in early.”

“How’s that working for you?”

“Not very well as you can see. It’s nice to see a familiar face.”

“I’m glad I could help you in your time of need,” James grinned, showing off a set of beautifully white teeth. “Did you report the post?”

Rose blushed, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I did. But I actually found out who was responsible for it all, it’s quite embarrassing really.”

“Oh yeah? That was quick. Who did it?”

Rose pulled a face of disgust and humiliation. “My little brother did it. Apparently he used his friends account to post it. You should’ve seen my Dad last night, he was pissed. My brother’s been grounded for a month and banned from video games. I’ve told him that I’m not going to his graduation, I might go to his funeral though.”

James chuckled along with her as they walked towards there first class of the day. “Siblings, eh? You love them, and then you hate them.”

“Do you have brothers or sisters?”

“Believe it or not, I’m a twin. Her name’s Donna, she’s got red hair and fiery attitude. She doesn’t go to this school though.”

“What is it you’re here for again? Science, right?”

“Yep,” he grinned, popping the ‘p’, and delighted that she’d remembered. “Mostly physics and chemistry. But I love astrology the most. The stars fascinate me, and I like looking at star signs. Donna thinks I’m weird and an alien, but I just tell her that she’s the alien. And that’s when I usually get slapped. But as I said, that’s siblings for you. You’re the artist right? Maybe you could show me after-school sometime.”

“S – sure,” Rose stammered, her voice trembling. “I’m free later today if you want?”

“Of course. Just message me a time and a place. I’ll see you later, just ignore the comments if you can, it’ll die down eventually.”

~

The comments didn’t die down whatsoever. They followed Rose in the corridors, on her way to her classes, even in the classrooms. She did her very best to ignore it, to not argue back. But it was hard. Even Alyssa was keeping her distance, which put Rose in an even more foul mood. She tried messaging her, but got no response. In the group chat Matt and Tiffany were saying the most vile things about her, but James was trying to defend her to no avail.

By the end of the day, Rose didn’t even want to go to this stupid party. It wasn’t even worth it. At least James was willing to meet with her, and that alone got her through the day. Since the weather was nice, Rose sat under the massive oak tree on the field, and had already started sketching when James strolled over, carrying a small bag with him.

“You’ve started without me I see.”

“That’s what it’s like being an artist,” Rose beamed, delighted when he sat down beside her. “When you’ve got the inspiration you’ve got to start.” She pulled out another sketchbook and handed it to him. “You can have a look at these though if you want? Some of them aren’t finished.”

Unlike Alyssa who didn’t really look properly, James took his time, carefully turning the pages as he poured through each sketch and drawing. Some were coloured, others were just done in pencil. Either way, he was blown away by her talent. There were sketches of her Dad and brother, some of herself, and others of whom he assumed were her mother, but they appeared to be in photo frames.

“These are brilliant,” he whispered in awe. “How long does each one take you to do?”

“It depends on my mood and how inspired I feel. Sometimes they can take half an hour, other times it can be more than that.”

“I noticed that you do a lot of portraits,” James pointed out. “And of your family members. Whose the woman in the photo frames?”

Rose was hesitant to respond, but felt like she could trust James. “It’s my Mum.”

“Is she still alive?” James asked, instantly regretting how crude that sounded. “I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer that if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s OK,” Rose reassured him, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “I just don’t talk about it very often, even though I should. My Mum couldn’t cope when my brother and I were younger, When I was seven, she was admitted to a mental institution after having a breakdown, and she’s been there ever since. The last time I saw her was on my eighth birthday, I’ve refused to go since then. My Dad’s been trying to get me to see her, but I don’t want too.”

“What’s stopping you?”

“I’m scared.” Rose admitted, her knuckles turning white around the pencil in her hand. She’d never openly said why she didn’t go before. “I don’t like hospitals. My Dad keeps telling me that it’s not like it was, but the thought of hospitals and places like where my Mum is scare me.”

“I’m sure she’s being well taken care of,” James assured her. “If you’re nervous, couldn’t you speak to her over the phone or a video call? And then take it from there?”

“I could try.” Rose agreed, annoyed that she’d never thought of that herself. “Thank you.” She nodded towards the bag. “What did you bring with you?”

“Oh, silly me! I brought us a little picnic. After the day you’ve had, I thought you could use a pick me up.” 

To her surprise, James pulled out two sides of macaroni cheese, apple slices and two cans of soda to drink. Rose was touched by his sweet gesture when she realised that these were some of her favourite foods, and he’d noticed.

“You’re sweet, thank you.” She tucked into the macaroni, not realising how hungry she was.

“You’re welcome.” He grinned, digging into his own portion.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, sorry about that. There'll be triggers in the next chapter though, so keep an eye out for those. :) Please let me know what you all think!

After her spontaneous picnic with James, Rose found it much easier to ignore the comments spreading throughout the school. And just as he predicted, they were soon dying down when they saw Rose wasn’t affected. Even Alyssa had started talking to her again, much to Tiffany’s dismay. It was clear to Rose that Tiffany didn’t particularly like her, and probably felt jealous that Alyssa was spending more time with Rose instead of her. 

But Rose didn’t have time for Tiffany’s pettiness.

It was the Friday before the party, and the girls were getting excited, talking animatedly about what they were going to wear and how they would style their hair. The plan was for the girls to come to Rose’s, and then they would get ready together. Throughout the day, the group chat was active, and Rose was rather disappointed to learn that James would not be attending.

Matt: Remember girls, all you need to bring are booze and boobs. ;)

Rose: How on Earth are we supposed to get booze? We’re underage.

Matt: Just flutter those pretty eyelashes of yours and do what you girls do best. Or if you’re too scared, then “borrow” some of your Daddy’s supply.

Rose balked at the idea. She knew her Dad occasionally drank, especially on Friday when work was over for the week. But the very notion of stealing from him was going a step too far, considering how much he trusted and relied on her to help him keep things afloat. She was torn. She wanted the approval of her friends, and wanted to be accepted by her peers. She had to make the right impression.

During the night, when Rose was sure everybody else was asleep, she snuck into the living room and over to the cabinet. She wasn’t too knowledgable about alcohol, but she grabbed the first two bottles she saw, making sure that it didn’t look too obvious that any had been taken. She closed the cabinet lid as quietly as she could, and tip toed back to her room, her heart racing as she shut the door. She looked at the bottles, and was pleased with herself that she’d got a bottle of vodka, and another of whiskey. Surely Matt would be happy with that?

Rose: Got the booze sorted.

Matt: Nice one! There’s hope for you yet, Rosie. See you tomorrow.

~

The girls were on their way, and Rose was anxious about them seeing where she lived. But it was too late to back out now. Her outfit was hanging on the outside of her wardrobe. It wasn’t too exciting, just a black miniskirt – which Pete was not happy about, and would only let it slide this one time – and a sparkly white top.

Rose was on edge as she waited for her friends, and was relieved when they finally knocked on the door. She bounded up from the sofa, and rushed to open it, greeting them with a smile. “Hi, guys! Come on in.”

“Oh,” Alyssa murmured, embarrassed, and disgusted. “You really live here?”

“Uh, yeah? What’s wrong with where I live? Not everybody lives in a mansion like you.”

“There’s no need to get snippety with me!” Alyssa huffed, shoving past her and into Rose’s room. “We’ve got about two hours to get ready, and I’ve got so much to do.” She dumped her bag on Rose’s bed, looking around the barely decorated room.  
The walls were a shade of lilac, with some areas peeling and covered in damp spots. There was a desk and a bookcase in the corner, where a lot of Rose’s art supplies and schoolbooks were kept. There were also knick-knacks, photographs and memorabilia from her childhood scattered, which is what Rose loved about her room. This was her comfort zone, and she was grateful that she had her own space (whereas Tony slept on an air mattress in their Dad’s room).

Tiffany didn’t have much to say, and Rose wasn’t in the mood to argue.

“Are we going to get ready or are we not bothering?” Rose wanted to know, the tension in the room so thick that you could cut it with a knife.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re getting ready. Thank God I showered before I came here,” Alyssa quipped, flicking off imaginary dust off her sleeve. “I’d be freezing with all the damp in here.”

Rose bit her tongue to stop herself from arguing back. No, it wasn’t the most glamorous of homes, but her Dad worked two jobs just so that he and his children were comfortable and had the most basic of necessities. Alyssa of course had been spoiled by her Daddy, who she learnt from James was a top defence lawyer, so she had no idea of the value of money. As the other two argued about what music to put on, Rose grabbed her outfit and went to get changed in the bathroom. Hopefully she wouldn’t regret tonight.

~

Finally, finally, almost two hours later, the girls were ready to go. Well, Rose and Tiffany had been waiting for ages, Alyssa was too indecisive as to which of three outfits to wear. She went with her designer black dress and matching heels, her long brunette hair had been curled. Out of the three of them, she wore the most make up, and at a glance you could say she’d look at least seventeen rather than fifteen. Tiffany wasn’t that bothered about dressing up, and had donned some denim shorts, flats and a plan t-shirt, with her red hair tied back into a high ponytail. Since she couldn’t afford her own, Rose wasn’t going to bother with make up either, but Alyssa insisted that she borrow some of hers, and even offered to help her do it. Her hair was styled so that she had two French braids on pinned either side of her head, the rest of her blonde hair loose.

“I’ll see you later, Dad.” Rose called, leaving with the girls.

“I want you back by ten o’clock,” he reminded her, drying his hands off with a tea towel. “No later. Otherwise you’re grounded.”

“You’ve got it.”

~

The party wasn’t as ‘live’ as Rose was expecting it to be. For starters, there were about thirty or more other people, and they were chatting animatedly amongst one another, drinks in hand. Some music was pumping throughout the rooms, and the lights were dimly lit, creating a rather calm atmosphere. The door swung open, and Matt greeted them with a wolf whistle.

“Come on in, ladies,” he all but purred, moving aside to let them in, playfully slapping Rose on her bum. He held his hands up in surrender before she could retort. “The bar’s on the left over there, so help yourself to some drinks. There’s some mocktails if you’re not interested in the good stuff. Enjoy yourselves.”

Rose followed the other two to the bar, and gave her bottles that she’d stolen to the bartender. She remembered James’s warning about somebody spiking the drinks, and asked for some sparkling water. To be honest, Rose found the party quite dull, and not very entertaining. At around eight o’clock, there was Rose, Alyssa and Tiffany, Matt, and two guys that she didn’t know. The music was starting to die down, and the six of them were relaxing the in the living room, partially drunk, apart from Rose.

“I’m bored.” Tiffany whined, after several moments of awkward silence.

“We could play a game.” Alyssa suggested, her eyes sparkling with mischief. 

“What kind of game?” Rose wanted to know, not liking this idea at all. She didn’t want to be put in a situation where she was vulnerable.

“We could play Twister.” Matt grinned, winking at Rose.

“No way, we’re not playing a game where you’ve got opportunity to cop a feel!” Tiffany snorted. “How about we play ‘truth or dare’? And if you have done something, then you have to take a shot.” The group murmured in agreement, and they moved to sit in a circle on the ground. To Rose’s dismay, Matt sat next to her, with Tiffany on her other side. Tiffany pulled out a bottle of pure vodka, and filled everybody’s glasses halfway. “To make this fair, let’s spin a bottle.” She and Alyssa exchanged a smirk as Tiffany span the bottle, the tension thick as it finally landed on Matt. “Alright Mr Logan, truth or dare?”

Matt smirked, leaning backwards, totally relaxed. “Dare.”

“I dare you to take off your shirt.”

Matt scoffed, and quickly whipped off his shirt, showing off his six pack. “Done.” Then it was his turn to spin the bottle, and it landed on Alyssa. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to remove your underwear.”

Nobody dared to breathe in that moment, thinking that Matt had gone a step too far. But to everybody’s surprise, Alyssa took a swig of her vodka, and swiftly removed her lacy black underwear, throwing it in Matt’s face with a giggle.

“Too easy.” Alyssa grinned, as Matt bundled up her underwear and stuff it in his pocket. “Are we going to get something interesting before it turns into strip poker? My turn to spin.” She span the bottle, and it landed on Rose. “Truth or dare?”

“Truth.” Rose answered without hesitation. She wasn’t up for doing dares, knowing how dangerous they could get, especially with alcohol involved.

“Is it true that your Mum’s a psycho?”

Rose’s head snapped up, startled by the question. She’d only told James about her Mum, how the hell did Alyssa know? “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You shouldn’t leave private letters lying around.” Alyssa pulled a letter out of her purse, and passed it around to the group. When it reached Rose, she realised that it was a visitation letter that her Mum had sent her, asking to come and see her. “Is it true? Is your Mum mentally fucked up?”

“She’s not mentally fucked up, and she’s not a psycho!” Rose growled, her cheeks burning. Even though Rose hadn’t seen her Mum in years, she still defended her. “Some people just can’t cope, and they need help. My Mum couldn’t cope, there’s nothing wrong or weird about that.”

“If your Mum’s a psycho, then does that mean you’re a psycho?” Tiffany asked, smirking cruelly. “Would explain a lot of things.”

“I’m not like my Mum. Believe it or not I’m completely normal. It’s you lot who are psycho. I’ve had enough of this bullshit. I’m going home.” Rose went to get up, but yelped when Matt seized her wrist and pulled her back down to the floor. “Let go!”

“Chill out, Rose, we’re only teasing.” Matt said, trying to calm her down. “We’re just having some fun, Alyssa was just messing with you. Right Alyssa?”

“Right. There’s no need to be so dramatic.” Alyssa said with an eye-roll. She then span the bottle again, which landed on Matt again. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to make out with Rose.”

“No way!” Rose protested, trying to squirm away. Before she could react however, Matt had wound his arm around the small of her back, pressing her against him and proceeded to make out with her. She pushed against him, her skin crawling with disgust as he forced his tongue in her mouth. The others were watching in shock, surprised at how aggressive Matt really was. Rose felt as though she was about to throw up, and bit down hard on his tongue, hard enough to draw back.

Matt cried out in pain, and reacted by slapping her hard across the face. “You bitch!”

Trembling and panting heavily, Rose scrambled to her feet and dashed out of the house, needing fresh air. She fumbled for her phone and texted her Dad, asking for a ride. She needed to get out of there. Now.

“Are you alright?”

Rose jumped back, not expecting Alyssa to show concern in the slightest. “What do you think? None of you did anything to stop him! He’s crazy! I don’t care how much he’d been drinking, there’s no excuse for what he just did. Dare or not! I’m going home, I’ve had enough.”

Pete tried asking her how the party was, concerned with how quiet she was, but Rose was in no mood to talk. When they arrived home, Rose went to her room and had a long, cold shower, attempting to calm down. She decided then and there that she needed to keep her distance from her so called “friends”, since they put her in a situation that could’ve easily got out of hand. After changing into her pyjamas, she muted the group chat, not wanting to see whatever crap they were writing. She climbed into bed when her phone pinged, alerting her to a message.

James: Is everything alright? Matt’s been blowing up my phone and said that he wants to talk to you, but his messages aren’t getting through.

Rose: I’ve been better. Something happened at the party, and I’d rather not talk to any of them right now.

James: What happened at the party? What did Matt do?

Rose didn’t want to tell him at first, and initially hesitated. But something told her that she could trust him, and decided to tell him.

Rose: We were playing ‘truth or dare’, there was alcohol involved. Alyssa dared Matt to make out with me, and he got a big aggressive. He didn’t grope me or anything, but he was getting too into it, and I bit him. Then he slapped me.

James: Jesus Christ! I’m so sorry he did that to you. That THEY did that to you and put you in that position. Matt can be an ass sometimes, but he’s a good guy. I’ll talk to him.

Rose doubted that James could get through to Matt, but she was willing to give James a chance.

~

Rose dreaded going into school the following week, and after checking in with the group chat, she wanted to avoid going in altogether. Matt was calling her frigid for not readily responding when he made out with her, and Tiffany had gone back to calling her a slut. There was nothing new there. The whispers and passing comments in the corridor were becoming more frequent, and it was getting harder to ignore them. It was worse in her English class, since her so called “friends” from the group chat were all in that class, and they all sat together. Rose used to sit with them too, but now she sat on the other side of the classroom. She thought it was best to keep her distance, and to focus more on her studies.

She’d also seriously been considering visiting her Mum for the first time, but was still hesitant. The fear of being in a medical environment still terrified her, and she still had nightmares and flashbacks to the last visit with her Mum.

Seven years earlier …

Rose was seven years old, her little brother was only four, so he didn’t really understand what was going on. The last time Rose had seen her Mum was just over a month ago, and it wasn’t pretty. She’d had a full on meltdown over a broken vase, and she wouldn’t stop screaming. Pete had told Rose to hide under the dining table, hugging Tony to her, covering his ears to block out the screams. Pete was doing his upmost best to calm his wife down, but protecting his children was his priority, and he’d locked Jackie in the kitchen as he called for an ambulance.

Rose remained under the table, but she was able to see her mother being removed from the home kicking and screaming, restrained in a straightjacket. The next time Rose saw her, Pete had taken her to the hospital. She could visual it vividly as Pete led her down the corridor, holding onto her hand tightly. There were nurses and doctors milling about, some pushing carts with medicine and syringes, others leading patients to there destinations. They eventually came across to a little side room, and Pete opened the door. 

Jackie was laying immobile in the bed, and Rose could see her wrists were cuffed to the railings. Even though she was seven years old, Rose could tell that her mother was pumped with drugs to make her woozy and “feel good”. Rose stayed by the door as Pete went to greet his wife, and leaned over to kiss her on the forehead.

“Hello, honey. I’ve brought somebody here to see you.” Pete looked up and smiled at Rose reassuringly, beckoning her closer. “Sweetheart, it’s OK, don’t be scared. She’s still your Mum, she’s in a place that’ll make her feel better. Come on.”

Rose shuffled over cautiously, shoving some drawings she and Tony had done for her on the side table. “Hi Mummy.” She whispered, her heart pounding in her throat. “I love you, and I miss you.”

Despite being drunk on medication, Jackie lifted her head a little, and smiled sleepily at her daughter. “Is that my little girl? I’m sorry for scaring you, I’ll get better though, I promise. Can I have a hug? I’d give you one myself but I can’t move my hands.” Rose hid behind her father’s legs, shaking her head. “Give me a hug, Rose!”

Rose whimpered, the rise in Jackie’s voice scaring her.

“Honey, don’t do that,” Pete pleaded, gently pushing Rose out of harms way. “You’re scaring her, stop it.”

Jackie became more agitated, demanding that they leave. Pete quickly scooped up Rose in his arms and encouraged her to close her eyes and covering her ears as Jackie started to thrash and scream. He pressed the emergency button so that the nurses would attend to her. Pete carried his distraught daughter out of the hospital and back home, and since that traumatic visit, Rose had not been back.

Maybe next time would be different.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Trigger Warning**  
> There'll be scenes of violence and physical abuse in this chapter. If you are triggered by this sort of thing, then please do not read it.

Rose hated PE. She used to love PE back in primary school, and was even on the gymnastics team, and had even won a bronze medal in a competition. She was so proud of that moment, and still had the medal, which was hanging up on the wall above her bed. But now, PE at high school was a completely different ball game (no pun intended). The most awkward part was knowing whether you’d be picked for the team or not, and during her first week at the school, she was on Alyssa’s team. Now however, she was deliberately the last to be picked, and by that time, there was enough people on each teams, that she had to sit on the side bench.

Today they were playing volleyball, and Rose sat glumly on the side bench, her chin resting in her hands, wishing that she could join in. Matt and Tiffany were on one side, and Alyssa was on the other. The three of them were playing so fiercely, that it felt more like a serious competition.

Not even half way through the game, one of the girls on the team had fallen, and made a dramatic display of having broken her nail. To be fair to her though, the groove of her finger was bleeding quite heavily, so the coach sent her off to go and see the nurse.

“Tyler, you’re up!” The coach shouted, eager to get on with observing the game.

“We’ll be alright without her, coach,” Alyssa said in her usual, whiny voice. “We don’t need a full team.”

“That’s enough, Monroe,” the coach snapped, having no time for her bitchiness. “We’re on a time crunch here.”

Hesitantly, Rose went up onto the court and replaced the spot that the previous girl had been in. Alyssa caught her elbow and was within inches of her face as she muttered a threat to her.

“You’d better not fuck this up for us, psycho, we’re in the lead. And it’s going to stay that way.” Alyssa shoved Rose away, and Rose missed Alyssa sharing a knowing look with Matt and Tiffany, nodding her head as an indication.

Rose took her position behind Alyssa, her arms raised, ready to hit the ball. It’d started off clean at first, the ball being hit back and forth between the players, but then, the mood quickly changed. Whenever one of the others had the ball, they used all of their body strength and hit the ball at Rose. Not towards her so that she could hit it back, but the ball was thrown at her. The ball was hit that viciously, that Rose struggled to catch it in time, and ended up spending the rest of the ‘match’ using her as target practice. 

Finally, finally, the coach blew the whistle, signalling the end of the ‘game’. She didn’t seem to notice the abuse that Rose was suffering, and had her back turned the entire time. Somehow, Rose was still standing, though she ached all over, and it seemed that the ball had hit every part of her body. She’d definitely get bruises in the next few days, and right now Rose just wanted to get away. When they went to the changing rooms, Rose sat on the bench by her locker, counting to ten. It wasn’t even lunchtime yet, and she’d already been beaten upon. The worst part was, she didn’t even understand why they were acting this way to her. She hadn’t done anything wrong. Was it because she’d rejected Matt’s advances at the party, and that was frowned upon? Had she hurt his pride? Probably. If that was the case, Rose knew that she didn’t deserve to be treated this way. It wasn’t right. She’d considered speaking to one of her teacher’s, but knew that it’d be worse for her in the long run. Rose was cut out of her thoughts hearing cackling from Tiffany and Alyssa, as they joined her in the changing room.

“Oi, Tyler! If you’re not gonna bother talking to us in the group chat, then you might as well leave it.” Tiffany snorted, removing the hair tie to let her hair down. “You’re not wanted there anyway, actually, you’re not wanted here. Nobody likes you. You’ll never have any friends. Why don’t you just not bother coming to school at all? It’d be better off without you.”

Rose ignored her hateful comments, and mentally counted to ten. She wasn’t going to let them get to her. She was going to be strong and refuse to take the bate. She stood up, and made an attempt to get changed, but not responding to Tiffany’s threat wasn’t good enough for her. Rose yelped in shock as Tiffany grabbed a fistful of her hair, and yanked her head back, holding her tight.

“Get off of me!” Rose cried, only to have Tiffany’s hand clamped over her mouth to muffle her shouts. Rose was then bustled into the darkened showers that nobody used and was slammed back against the brick wall. She gasped in shock, the wind momentarily knocked out of her.

“Scream like that again and I’ll knock you out in the blink of an eye.” Tiffany hissed, her fists clenched, knuckles turning white.

Alyssa had remained quiet until now, and had been keeping watch, but the PE coach was in her office, not bothering with controlling her class. And the other girls didn’t dare intervene or help. Rose was terrified, and she was trapped.

“I don’t understand what I’ve done wrong!” Rose protested, trying not to go into panic mode. She wanted to try and reason with them. “Why do you all hate me?”

Alyssa had now turned, hands confidently on her hips. “Oh we don’t hate you, we just don’t like you. There’s a difference. Matt’s the one that hates you. He hates you for turning him down at the party, and thinks that you’re a frigid bitch. But we just think that you’re a slut, but he’s not good enough for your ‘standards’. Considering you come from an estate, your standards must be pretty low. You’d probably end up sleeping with somebody so high on drugs you won’t even notice, you’d sleep with anybody with a pulse. You won’t amount to anything you know, even at this school. Your Mum’s a psycho, and the same thing runs in the family, so you’ll probably end up as a psycho too. You’re not one of us. You don’t belong here. When you go home today, don’t bother coming back. If you do, this’ll only get worse. Right, Tiff?”

“Right.” Tiffany agreed, a smirk on her face. But it wasn’t a normal smirk, it was evil. Her clenched fist swung back and hit Rose in the pit of her stomach, just above her groin. The two girls watched in delight as Rose sank to the floor, curling into a ball, winded. She was already in pain, and it only intensified as Tiffany took advantage of her vulnerable state and swiftly kicked her in the stomach three times. “Oh I’m sorry, did that hurt? Good. It was supposed too.”

Alyssa crouched down on her hunches, and instructed Tiffany to hold Rose down, which was easy enough to do. Alyssa then lifted up Rose’s shirt, admiring the earlier bruises from volleyball, and the new ones from the beating. She took out her phone, and snapped a couple of photos, for blackmail use and for future humiliation. “I don’t know why you bother wearing make up, it doesn’t help you at all you know. You’d be better off wearing a bin liner, but thinking about it, it’d be better if you weren’t here at all. And by that, I mean existing. Nobody wants you, nobody cares about you, and if you come back on Monday, then we’ll make sure to remind you that you’re not wanted. Go back to whatever school you came from.”

They then left her, curled up in the shower room, but not before Tiffany kicked her another three times. The bell went at that moment, indicating the end of the lesson. It took Rose more than half an hour just to get to her feet and to get changed, each movement excruciating. Luckily there was no one in the changing rooms, and the coach had gone elsewhere, so Rose was saved from answering any awkward questions. It was only Thursday, and Rose was tempted to ditch the rest of the day and to just go home. But she knew that her Dad wouldn’t be happy, especially since he’d made the effort to get her into this school. She couldn’t let him down. Instead of going to her lessons like she was supposed to, Rose went to sit under the tree where she and James had shared a picnic during her first week. That felt like so long ago. She knew that the girls would be in class, and was grateful to have some peace and quiet.

~

Rose had grabbed some lunch from the cafeteria before the regular crowd shuffled in, and instead of going back outside, she retreated to the safety of the library, sitting at a large table between some bookshelves. At least here she could work on her art project. She still had to work on some of the self-portraits, as they took the longest to do. She was referencing from a photograph of her Mum back when she was pregnant with her brother, and was actually happy and healthy. Rose was that engrossed with her work and listening to her music, that she wasn’t aware that somebody was trying to get her attention until they tapped her on the arm.

She jumped in shock, and looked up, expecting to see one of the girls. Thankfully, it was only James, carrying a stack of books in the crook of his arm. “Hi. Sorry, I didn’t see you there.” Rose said quietly, taking out her headphones. “Aren’t you supposed to be in class? What are you doing in here?”

“You’re supposed to be in class too,” he pointed out, not at all defensive like she expected. “I help the librarian when I have study breaks. What’s your excuse?”

Rose didn’t want to tell him about the beating, so she came up with the best excuse that she could. “I had to get away for a bit, I’m really overwhelmed at the moment and I needed some space and time to myself.” Well, that wasn’t exactly an excuse, and was partially true. “I wanted some time to work on my project.”

“As long as it doesn’t become a regular thing.” James kindly warned her. She was the first person he’d come across that legitimately tried at this school, and he wanted her to succeed. He then properly took in her appearance, and noticed the bags forming under her eyes, her untidy hair that was usually well groomed. “Are you sure there’s nothing else going on? You look a bit peaky.”

Damn him and his observational skills. It seemed that no matter how hard she tried, nothing got past him. 

“I’m not feeling brilliant,” Rose admitted, shifting in her seat slightly, which was the wrong thing to do. “We were playing volleyball in PE, and I was chosen as target practice. And since then I’ve had a pretty bad stomach ache.”

“You should go and see the nurse.” James suggested. “She’ll examine you and will determine if you should go home or not. I’ll walk you down there if you want.”

Rose didn’t have a choice, and didn’t want to make a fuss, so she reluctantly agreed to go with him to see the nurse. Each step she took was excruciating, a searing pain burning in her chest. She started to inwardly panic as they got closer, wondering how she could avoid having her chest examined. “Thank you for walking down with me, I think I can manage this next bit on my own.” She assured him with a smile. Over his shoulder, Rose looked straight into the eyes of Alyssa and Tiffany, who were watching her carefully, assessing her next move. To her relief, the bell went again. “I’ll see you later though, yeah?”

Satisfied, James left her be and went on his way to class. Alyssa and Tiffany chose that moment to approach Rose, blocking her entrance to the nurses office.

“And where are you going?” Tiffany demanded, her fists once again clenched.

“I – I wasn’t going to – “ Rose insisted, trying to back away, only to back up into Alyssa. 

“Watch where you’re going, you clumsy slut!” Alyssa cried, her toes now aching. “What were you talking to James about?”

“I didn’t tell him anything, I swear!” Rose was quickly backed against the lockers, the girls on either side, effectively trapping her once again. “I just told him that I wasn’t feeling well, he was the one that suggested that I go to see the nurse. But I wasn’t going too.”

“What do you think?” Tiffany asked Alyssa, who was clearly the boss in this situation. “Should we let her off this time?”

Alyssa took her time thinking about the perfect response. To Rose’s dismay, Alyssa pressed her palm against Rose’s stomach, applying a small amount of pressure. Rose whimpered in pain, and bit her lip to stop herself from letting out a cry. She didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention. “If you tell anybody about this, even your family, then we’ll do much worse than this. I don’t know if you know this or not, but Tiffany’s a smoker. And she likes to play with fire. If you tell anybody, then we’ll use more than just our hands. Is that understood?”

Rose nodded quickly, silently begging them to leave her alone. “I promise, I won’t tell anybody. You have my word.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Trigger Warning**  
> There is a scene in this chapter involving knife torture and physical violence. If you are triggered by this at all then I suggest that you do not read.

When Rose wanted to be, she could be a damned good liar. She was still going through the waves of emotions following the beating from Alyssa and Tiffany, and given there warning as to turning up at school again, Rose made a show to her Dad on Sunday that she wasn’t feeling good. She wrapped up in her nightgown that morning, and joined her Dad and brother in the living room, flopping dramatically onto the sofa, curling up into a ball.

“Are you alright, love?” Pete asked, focused on his spreadsheet that he was working on. He took a break and looked up at his daughter properly. “You look a bit peaky.”

“I feel more than peaky.” Rose mumbled, bundling further into her nightgown. “I feel awful. There’s a bug going around school, and I think I’ve caught it.”

Tony, who was engrossed in his video games, had rolled his eyes, knowing what his sister was up to. Pete on the other hand, was definitely concerned. He leaned forwards and felt her forehead with his palm.

“You are warm,” he noted, frowning. “Hopefully it’s just a twenty-four hour bug and you’ll feel better in no time. But you should stay off school tomorrow, I’ll ring your teacher in the morning. Why don’t you get to bed and I’ll make some of my famous chicken noodle soup?”

“Thanks Dad.” Rose smiled, feeling a little bad for lying, but relieved that he’d suggested taking tomorrow off school. She ignored her brother’s scathing look and went to her room, and snuggling under the covers. 

The group chat had been blowing up like crazy, especially since Alyssa had uploaded the photos of Rose’s bruised chest. Tiffany and Matt were egging Alyssa on to do much worse, and pursued with the threats to Rose to stay away.

Matt: No way! You actually did it? You were definitely a savage in a past life, Aly. 

Alyssa: It was worth it. You should’ve seen her face, she was terrified! She probably thought we were going to kill her.

Tiffany: That’s so tempting right now. Ugh, I just can’t stand the sight of her ugly mug. Who does she think she is? Coming to our school and making out like she’s some hot shot, when really she’s from a scruffy estate? That’s where they send all the stray dogs.

Alyssa: I know, right? She has no right coming here, it’s not like she has a special talent anyway. Not like us. We’re all actually worth something, and we’ll all get places in life. Whereas she’ll probably end up pregnant in a couple of months and get hooked on drugs. 

Tiffany: Yeah right, no guy with a brain will go anywhere near her and impregnate her. She’d probably loose the baby anyway, and even if she had kids, they’d be better off without her.

Rose had tears in her eyes, and her cheeks flushed with embarrassment and humiliation, reading through the vile comments of the chat. She knew that they knew she would read it, as it showed when she was online. She was saddened to see that James wasn’t commenting, or standing up for her like he did last time. She felt like she could trust him, and told him a lot of personal things that she’d never spoken to anyone about. Not even her Dad. Oh well, there goes that friendship. She should’ve known it was never going to last anyway. Feeling her temper suddenly rise, Rose felt the urge to stand up for herself, even though she knew that that wouldn’t help the situation at all.

Rose: I hope you’re all enjoying yourselves, spreading mean and hateful comments about me.

Alyssa: Oho, the slut finally speaks! Took you long enough. We’re allowed to say whatever we want online, there’s no rules against that. They’re not exactly lies though, are they? Statistically where you’re from, all of the young girls end up pregnant. It’s only a matter of time before you spread your legs without protection.

Tiffany: You’d probably give the poor guy herpes too. Or multiple STD’s. You could set up your own drive through.

Rose: Stop it! Don’t you have anything better to do?

Alyssa: Aw, is the slut crying? Nobody gives a shit about you around here, you’ll see soon enough. But then again, you’re not coming back here, are you?

Tiffany: Why don’t you do us all a favour and just top yourself?

Furious, Rose was about to respond and defend herself again, when there was a knock at her door. She jumped in surprise and quickly shut off her phone, hastily wiping her tears away. Tony had already opened the door, catching her crying, carrying a tray with the soup and a cup of tea.

“I know you’re not really sick.” Tony murmured, shoving his hands into his pockets after placing the tray on her bedside table. “I’ve seen the photos that Alyssa posted.”

Rose stared at him in shock, her eyes growing wide. “H-how?”

“My mate Harry is Alyssa’s little brother, so he saw them online and showed them to me.” He admitted. “You’re staying at home to avoid her, aren’t you?”

There was no point in lying, so she nodded. “You’re not so stupid after all.” Rose snorted, though she meant it good naturedly. “Promise me you won’t tell Dad?”

“It’s not my business to tell him.” Tony said seriously. “But you can’t avoid school forever, he’ll make you go back eventually. What’s gonna happen then? Are you gonna carry on letting her treat you like this?”

Rose couldn’t help but smile, touched by his concern. “When did you get so grown up? It wasn’t that long ago that you were still wearing diapers and singing Britney Spears at the top of your lungs.” Her smile grew when he blushed profusely. “Thank you for caring, but I’ll be OK. Thanks for keeping quiet, I’d best eat this soup before it gets cold.”

~

On Monday morning as promised, Pete called Rose’s school ahead of time, informing them of Rose’s absence. He went to work as normal, asking Rose to pick up Tony after school if she was feeling well enough, as he’d probably be running late tonight.

Rose had spent much of the night tossing and turning, trying to ignore the hateful comments that wouldn’t stop in her head. But she was more than relieved to spend the day at home, and not looking over her shoulder every five minutes. James still hadn’t commented, nor had he reached out to her. But Rose put him out of her mind, and tried to concentrate on her project which was due soon.

Why don’t you do us all a favor and just top yourself?

The voice in her head was getting louder, and it wouldn’t stop. The grip Rose had on her pen tightened, and she ended up grabbing a plain piece of paper, and started to furiously scribble on it, letting out all of her anger and frustration. She let out a yell and shoved everything off of the table, panting heavily. She slid down the wall to the floor, bursting into tears. She drew her knees up to her chest and buried her head in her knees, rocking back and forth, trying to breath.

The thought of going back to school tomorrow petrified her, and she didn’t know how she could deal with it much longer. After calming down, Rose had a long soak in the bath, practicing some breathing techniques. Feeling a little better, she made herself some lunch, and had another go at her project. Before long, it was time to pick up Tony from school. She stood on the road opposite, away from the gates and keeping her distance from her old friends. Even they didn’t bother talking to her anymore.

Rose waved at Tony to get his attention, and smiled as he walked over. “Hey. How was your day?”

“Rubbish.” Tony groaned, walking alongside her as they started the walk back home. “You’re lucky you got today off. I’ve got so much homework, and if I don’t get it done, then I’ve been threatened with detention every day of the week for the next month until it’s done. I swear Mrs Robinson hates me.”

“Mrs’ Robinson is still there?” Rose asked in surprise, remembering her former teacher, an ancient old woman who still believed in using the cane as a form of punishment. “My God she’s got more lives than a cat!” They were now walking across the courtyard to the estate, not to far from the flat.

“Oi, Tyler!”

Rose inwardly shuddered, hearing Matt Logan call her name. “Why don’t you run on ahead? I need to get something from the shop.”

Luckily, Tony didn’t stop to answer questions, nor had he noticed Matt, and ran ahead of her to the flat. Making sure that he was gone, Rose turned around, no emotion on her face as she looked at him coldly.

“What do you want?”

“You didn’t show up at school today, I was worried.”

“You were worried?” Rose sneered, unable to believe what she was hearing. “I didn’t think you were capable of feeling that emotion. What do you want? Why did you follow me home?”

“Look, I’m sorry the others are treating you like shit. It’s not fair and you shouldn’t have to go through that. And I’m sorry for how I’ve acted towards you, especially at the party. When I have a lot to drink I can be an ass. I’ll tell the others to back off, and I just wanted to apologise.”

Rose was conflicted. She wanted to believe that he was being genuine, and that it was the truth. But she couldn’t trust him, not after the way she’d been betrayed. “I – thank you for your apology, I appreciate it. I’d better get back and make sure that my brother’s not destroying the place.”

“Can I at least take you out for some chips? To make it up to you properly? I promise I’ll leave you alone afterwards.” Matt flashed her a dazzling smile, showing off his perfect teeth, and held out his hand. “We won’t be out for long.”

Rose hesitated, but then decided to give him the benefit of a doubt, and quickly texted Tony to let him know she’d be back in an hour and reminded him to do his homework. “I can spare an hour I suppose.” She went to him and cautiously took his hand.

“Perfect.”

~

Damn her and her naivety. 

Rose soon realized that going along with Matt was a big mistake. They didn’t go to the fish and chip shop. Instead, he led them towards the backstreets and alleys of the estate, where Alyssa and Tiffany were waiting in the shadows.

“Looks like you owe me ten quid.” Tiffany grinned, holding her palm out to Alyssa, who rolled her eyes and slapped a ten pound note into her hand. “Nice one, Matt.”

“It was so easy.” Matt grinned, blocking the only entrance of the alleyway and shoving Rose closer towards the others. “She’s so gullible.”

“You’re such a bastard!” Rose hissed at Matt, glaring at him over her shoulder. “No wonder you can’t get a girlfriend.”

“I wouldn’t be so cocky if I were you.” Alyssa, snapped, admiring her freshly painted nails. “We thought we’d stop by after school, see how you were doing, and to give you a more permanent reminder of our earlier conversation. Let’s bring her to somewhere more secluded.”

Before Rose could attempt to run away, Matt had grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth with his palm to silence her screams. He then shuffled her to the dead end of the alley, throwing her against the wall and stood back.

“Why do you keep doing this? You told me to stay away and I stayed away!” Rose cried, the panic in her rising once again. “What more do you want from me?”

“Shut the fuck up, you stupid bitch!” Tiffany shouted, swinging her fist and punching Rose in the gut, knocking the air from her lungs. She watched in satisfaction as Rose keeled over and fell to her knees, an arm covering her already bruised stomach. Tiffany then bent down on her hunches and pinned Rose to the ground on her back, holding her arms above her head. “Matt, get over here.”

Somewhat reluctant to get involved, Matt obeyed Tiffany and followed her instructions to hold Rose’s legs still, using all of his body weight to do so.

“What are you doing? Get off me!” Rose pleaded, unable to stop the flow of tears, terror radiating off her. She still didn’t understand what she’d ever done to hate her so much. 

Her eyes widened in horror when she saw Alyssa standing over her, a pocket knife twirling in her hand. She started to struggle, using whatever strength she had to kick at Matt, her hands scratching at Tiffany. But together they were much stronger than her, and held her down fast. Alyssa dropped to her knees beside Rose, seemingly enjoying the cries of terror coming from their victim. Without hesitation, she lifted up Rose’s shirt, her lower chest already a rainbow of colors from old and fresh bruises, and made up her mind as to what she was about to do.

Rose swallowed heavily when Alyssa got in her face, so close that Rose had no choice but to look her in the eyes. “What are you going to do?” She asked fearfully, a tremor in her voice.

“You’ll always be a slut. You’ll always be a whore, and you’ll always be worthless. You won’t amount to anything in life, and what I’m about to do will be a permanent reminder of that. You’ll never fall in love or have a family, nobody will ever want to be with you. If you do so happen to ever get a boyfriend – highly unlikely –, they’ll see this and will never want to come near you. You’ll always be alone and unloved and unwanted. Try not to scream so much. I’m sure that this will hurt.”

Rose screamed as she felt the tip of the knife pierce her flesh, the pain that intense that she felt like she was on fire. She automatically started to struggle, but she was held down that tightly, that she could barely move. The pain was that severe that she almost passed out, but Tiffany put a stop to that by slapping her across the face.

“Please, please stop!” Her pleading fell on deaf ears, and only seemed to encourage them more to see her in so much pain. “I’ll do anything – just stop.”

The torture went on forever, and the burning sensation continued, getting worse the longer it went on. Finally, after what felt like eternity, Alyssa pulled away, cleaning the bloody knife with a wipe and putting it in her pocket as though it’d never happened.

Alyssa stood up slowly, her gaze fixed on Rose as the others let her go. “I’ve given you a head start on topping yourself, the rest is up to you.”

And just like that, the three of them walked away, leaving Rose in the depths of the alleyway, bloody and bruised. After a couple of minutes alone, Rose tried to sit up, but because her arms were shaking violently from shock and pain, she dropped back down with an anguished cry. It didn’t take to long for the darkness to swallow her whole.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Trigger Warning**  
> There is some drug dealing and drug use in this chapter.

Rose was in and out of consciousness, the pain in her chest to overwhelming to comprehend. It wasn’t long though before she realised that she was alone. Somehow her brother had found her, and he was panicking.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Rose! What the hell happened?” Tony swore, shrugging his jacket off and applying pressure to her stomach, wincing as she cried out. “Sorry, sorry! Who was that kid that followed us? What was his name?”

“No questions, not now.” Rose gasped, struggling to stay awake. “Help me sit up?” With some difficulty, Tony managed to haul his sister into a sitting position, resting her against a wooden crate. She strained to get her money out of her coat pocket, and handed it to Tony. “Go to the chemist. Get some bandages, large plasters and some sort of antiseptic, and don’t dawdle like you usually do.”

“What the hell? You need to go to the hospital, not the damned chemist! Fuck it, I’m calling Dad.”

“NO!” Rose snatched his phone out of his hand. “We’re not telling Dad about this, no way! I’ll be fine once this has been patched up, trust me. Please Tony, he’s under so much pressure as it is, and I really don’t want him to be responsible for having a mental breakdown like Mum. I know you’re scared, just trust me, get the stuff from the chemist, and be quick.”

Tony really didn’t think that this was a good idea, keeping yet another secret from their Dad, but Rose was as stubborn as stubborn could get, and it’d be pointless arguing with her now. He reluctantly took the money, and ran to the chemist, his heart pounding in his throat. The bell to the shop dinged when he opened the door, and dashed to the first aid shelf, and scanned for the required items. In his moment of panic, he grabbed some saline packets to clean the wounds, and the large dressing plasters and bandages, quickly paying for them and running back out to his sister, just as it was beginning to rain.

“I got what I could.” He panted, dropping to his knees beside her. “Tell me what to do?”

Rose was on the verge of passing out again, and was struggling to keep her eyes open. “You – you need to clean the wound first, get it as c-clean as possible. Then p-put the plasters on, and t-then the bandages.” Her teeth were chattering, and it wasn’t because she was cold, she was going into shock. “I don’t suppose you have a drink on you?”

Luckily for her, he had a bottle of water in his jacket pocket, which he removed so that he could see the wounds. He could feel her embarrassment when he read the words ‘I am a slut’ and ‘I am a whore’ carved on her chest just above her thighs. It was starting to make sense who had done this to her, and he was pissed. He was more than pissed. He was angry.

With the wipes he’d purchased he poured on some of the saline solution. “I’m really really sorry about this.” Tony then took a deep breath, and started to wipe away the blood, and the closer he got to the wound, the more she cried out and whimpered. “Sorry – I’m trying to be gentle.”

“I know, I know.” Rose gasped breathlessly, turning a ghostly shade of white. “How did you find me?”

“I heard you screaming.”

“Oh.” Rose was silent for a couple of minutes, wincing every now and again as her stomach twitched. “I used to do this to you when you were little, fixing you up if you got cuts and scrapes, which happened a lot. Never thought you’d have to do it for me.”

“Let’s hope that this is a one time thing.” Tony joked, now putting the plasters over the wounds, making sure that they were properly dressed. The final step was to wrap the bandages around her, which was soon completed. “Right, that’s looking a lot better. Do you think we can stand?” As well as being stubborn, Rose could also be very determined when she wanted to be. Gritting her teeth and pushing through the pain, she growled as she lifted herself to her feet, leaning heavily against the brick wall. “That’s good, you’re doing well.” Tony encouraged her, keeping his hands out to catch her if she fell. “Just remember to focus on moving your feet forwards and breathe, we’re not in any rush.”

Rose tried her best, moving each foot forwards, but at the same time, taking it slowly. She felt incredibly woozy, and the thought of lying in her bed sounded like heaven. It felt like forever – no doubt it actually was – and a day to get up to the fourth floor, with Rose tripping and stumbling on the steps as they did so. But finally, finally they made it to their flat. Exhausted, Rose collapsed onto her bed, wanting nothing more than to sleep.

“What are we going to tell Dad?” Tony asked, worrying his bottom lip.

“Good question. Um, let’s just tell him that I tripped and fell on some glass when I was picking you up. He doesn’t need to know the real reason.”

“And what is the real reason?”

“Alyssa really doesn’t like me.” Rose said, which was the understatement of the century. “And she thinks that I’m the psycho.”

“What a loser.” Tony scoffed. “She’s seriously messed up in the head. Do you want me to get you some painkillers?”

Rose nodded, grateful that he was actually helping. “Yes please, and thank you Tony. Seriously, thank you.” Whilst he was gone, Rose changed with difficulty into some more comfortable clothing, and got under the covers. She accepted the painkillers off Tony and swallowed them whole, not bothering with any water. “I’m gonna get some sleep. G’night little man, love you.”

~

Why don’t you just top yourself?

You’ll always be a slut. You’ll always be a whore, and you’ll always be worthless.

I’ve given you a head start to topping yourself, the rest is up to you.

“Sweetheart? Can you hear me?”

Rose groaned, annoyed at being disturbed from her sleep. She opened her eyes, wincing as the light invaded them. “Yeah, I can hear you. What time is it?”

“Don’t try and sit up. It’s a little after ten, I just got in and Tony told me what happened. How are you feeling?”

“Like shit.”

“For once I’ll let that one slide.” Pete chuckled, brushing her hair out of her face. “Good job Tony was there to help you out. You’ll be having the rest of this week off, just so you know. I’ve left you some more painkillers on the side and some water, you’ll probably need them during the night. I’ll check on you in the morning. Goodnight love.”

“Mhm, night.”

~

I’ve given you a head start to topping yourself, the rest is up to you.  
Being alone inside the flat wasn’t doing Rose any good mentally. The cruel comments and remarks were constantly going around in her head and there was no off switch. She needed something for the mental torture, she couldn’t do it alone. Living on the estate, Rose new certain people that had access to things that would help her forget.

Even though her Dad had forbidden her to leave the house in her “condition”, Rose couldn’t stay in the house much longer. She zipped up her hoodie and went to the shady parts of the estate that people tended to avoid, and caught sight of a dealer lurking on the corner.

“Never thought I’d see you of all people around here.” The man smirked, his hands in his pockets. “What is it you want?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I want drugs.”

“I know that dummy.” He said rolling his eyes. “What do you want them for?”

“I want to forget. I want to forget shit that’s happened in my life. Is that a good enough answer?” Rose huffed, wanting this to be over and done with. “Are you gonna help me or not?”

He pulled out a small, clear plastic bag, which contained four little pills. “I have some benzodiazepines here, they’re good for memory loss. They’ll help you forget. Since you’re a newbie, first one’s on the house. If you want more, I can do a bottle of thirty for thirty quid. If you want something stronger then it’ll be more expensive. Here’s my number if you need me again.” He passed her a card with his number scribbled on. “I hope I won’t see you again, you’re too good for this shit Tyler.”

Rose nodded, accepting the little bag and pocketing it. “Thanks.”

~

Back in the confined safety of the flat, Rose shrugged off her coat and hung it on the coat rack, quickly getting her stash out of her pocket. She was more than relieved that she was alone, and didn’t have her Dad watching her every move.

She went to her room, where she already had a bottle of water on her bedside table. She sat on the edge of the bed, and with shaking hands she pulled out one of the pills, debating whether or not she should do this. She knew, morally that she shouldn’t, but right now her emotions were running riot, and she just wanted the noise to stop.

Taking a deep breath, Rose uncapped the bottle of water and threw the pill into the back of her mouth, swallowing it in one gulp. It was done. She put the bag with the rest of the pills in a tin where she kept some of her most prized possessions, and made sure it was hidden inside another bag. Stashing the tin back under the bed for safe keeping, Rose tried her best to calm down, and hoped to God that she wouldn’t need anymore.

Her heart pounding under the realization of what she’d just done, Rose lay down on the bed, curling into a ball and started to cry.

She was falling apart.


	7. Chapter 7

After seeing her mother lying in a hospital bed, drugged up on God knows what, Rose swore to herself that she would never resort to taking drugs, no matter how crappy she felt. Well, she’d already failed on that. She hoped that it would be a short term process, and wouldn’t get hooked on drugs like other kids on the estate did.

Out of sight, out of mind.

The drugs weren’t in her face, they were well and truly hidden. If she couldn’t see them, then she wouldn’t think about them. The pain in her stomach was still unbearable, even after taking painkillers. The worst part of the pain was knowing what the scars would forever say, no man would ever want to be intimate with her when he saw them. He’d turn and run in the opposite direction.

She’d forever be alone.

~

For the rest of the afternoon until Tony returned home, Rose distracted herself by watching TV. Her phone was beside her and the group chat was blowing up, but Rose had deliberately chosen to ignore it, knowing that they’d probably be mocking her. But then a different notification popped up on her phone, and Rose reluctantly read the screen, and was surprised to see a text from James.

James: Hi. I know I haven’t been around very much, and I apologise for that. I just wanted to make sure that you’re OK.

Rose: I’m fine.

James: Are you sure? I’ve been blocked from the group chat, so I don’t know what’s going on.

Rose sat up then, curious as to why he’d been blocked.

Rose: You’ve been blocked? Since when?

James: It was a day or two after the party, when I confronted Matt over what he’d done to you. He obviously told the others, and since then I’ve been blocked. I thought you were ignoring me, and that’s why I’ve not reached out.

Rose: Oh. I’m sorry. I don’t have control over the chat, so I thought you’d just disappeared and you didn’t want to know anymore.

Part of her was relieved, that James had been blocked from the group chat. At least then he hadn’t seen the photos that Alyssa had posted. 

James: Of course not. I’ve been worried about you, but you looked so focused on other things that I didn’t want to disturb you. Are you feeling alright, though? Did you get checked out with the nurse?

Rose: I did, turned out to be nothing to worry about.

Rose really didn’t like lying, especially to James. She’d already told him about her Mum, so why couldn’t she tell him about this?

She didn’t want him to see her as a failure.

James: I’m glad it wasn’t anything serious. Anyway, it’s nice to be back in touch again. I was wondering if you’d like to meet up this weekend? We could go and get some food or something?

Rose bit her lip, cursing when she felt a little blood. She really wanted to meet with him, but would it be possible to avoid the others at the same time?

Rose: I’d like that. :) Where were you thinking?

James: There’s a new diner that’s recently opened in town. I’ve been craving greasy food and a banana milkshake if you’re up for that?

Rose: Sounds like a plan. Just let me know the time and date and I’ll be there.

James: Brilliant. :) I can’t wait!

~

Rose was still beaming by the time Tony got home, and cheerfully greeted him. “Hey! How was your day?”

Tony blinked in bemusement, not expecting his sister to be this happy. “Um, it was alright I suppose. It’s school. How come you’re in such a good mood?”

“Believe it or not, I’m meeting up with a friend this weekend.”

Tony was even more confused. “I thought you didn’t have any friends.”

“You’re sarcasm is adorable,” she said dryly, hands on her hips. “But believe it or not I do have friends.”

~

The rest of the week passed without incident, and Rose was pleased with herself for not going near the stash of drugs hidden under her bed. Even with the group chat still going on, she was happy for the first time in a long while. She felt giddy, like she was on cloud nine.

They decided on the Saturday, around mid afternoon. The wounds on her stomach were starting to scab over, and go through the healing process, and mentally, she felt a little better. Even her Dad, who was usually consumed with his two jobs had noticed the change in his daughter’s demeanor, which made his day. It was nice to see her genuinely happy for once, and he hoped it would stay that way.

On Saturday, it was amusing for Pete to see Rose flitting back and forth throughout the flat, getting ready for her afternoon with James. He didn’t call it a date, since Rose didn’t say it was. With his mug of tea he watched as Rose hurried to the laundry cubby to get her clothes, darting back into her room and slamming the door. 

Rose had decided on her best pair of jeans, and a pink t-shirt with sparkly sequins on the shoulders. It was simple and comfortable, which was what she needed right now. She tied her hair into two French braids, and pulled on her nicest trainers and finally her denim jacket. She was in the hallway now, making sure that everything was in her bag, when her Dad appeared, holding a twenty pound note to her.

“What’s this for?” Rose asked in bemusement, already having money in her purse. “I’ve got money.”

“I know, but call this a treat. You deserve it and you’ve been through a lot, take it and have a good time on your date.”

Reluctantly, Rose accepted the note, rolling her eyes dramatically. “Dad,” she whined. “It’s not a date. We’re just friends.”

“Whatever.” Pete chuckled. “I was young once too, remember. I’ve been there with your mother. You’re going for lunch with a boy who’s your ‘friend’, so it’s a date.”

“Right, I’m going!” Rose announced, not wanting to be around for her Dad’s interrogation. “I’ll see you later.”

“Have a good time on your date, sweetheart.” Pete called as she headed out, down the steps.

“It’s not a date!”

~

Rose arrived at the diner on time, and was relieved to see James already sitting at a booth, waiting for her. It took everything in her to not run and make a fool of herself, so she casually strolled over, and slid into the opposite seat.

“Hi.”

“Hi, you made it.” James said, beaming. Even though he was early, he still got anxious that Rose would turn up at all. “How are you doing?”

“Better. Thank you.” Rose told him, shrugging off her jacket. “Have you ordered anything yet?”

“That would be impolite to order before you arrive,” he said with a grin, passing her a menu. “It’s been weird, not seeing you at school. How come you’ve been off for so long?”

“I had an accident, the clumsy person I am,” Rose lied, even though she didn’t like lying to James. “I was picking my brother up from school when I tripped and cut myself pretty badly on some glass. It’s not the cleanest place on my estate, so it’s common to find bits of broken bottles and whatnot.”

James winced, imagining her injuries. “Ouch. Sounds awful. I’m glad you’re better though. Are you back at school on Monday?”

“I should be.” Rose told him, inwardly cringing. She knew that she’d have to go back eventually, but it would be hard to avoid the others when they were in most of her classes. “I’ll see what my Dad says. What happened with the group chat? Do you still not have any answers?”

James shook his head, though it didn’t seem to bother him. “No, but I don’t really care. It’s just a place for toxic people to spread there shit. Are you still part of it?”

“I’m part of it, but I never contribute.” Rose admitted, thankful that he’d never seen any of Alyssa’s photos. “I’m quite tempted just to leave it.” She then decided to change the topic. “What are you ordering?”

“I’ve had a craving for a burger and a banana milkshake.”

Rose looked over the menu, and when the waitress appeared, she ordered a hot dog with everything on it and a strawberry milkshake. “You like milkshakes then?”

“Specifically banana. I love anything banana flavored.” He grinned. The waitress returned with their milkshakes. “Finally!” James leaned forwards and captured the straw with his mouth, taking a big sip of his milkshake. “That is really good. Do you want to try some?”

Rose nodded, and tried some of his milkshake, and had to agree with his earlier statement. “That is really good.”

It didn’t take long for the food to arrive, and the two of them enjoyed the meal, taking animatedly about their hopes and dreams, specifically what they’d like to do in the future.  
“I’d love to have my own art studio.” Rose explained, popping a chip into her mouth. “My own space to be creative, and plenty of storage to have all of my art supplies. I’d have an unlimited supply of canvases, all different sizes. Whenever I get the urge to paint then I’d have the ability to do so. What would you have in your dream house?”

“I’d want an observatory, with a clear glass roof. I can put my telescopes in there and clearly see the stars, depending on the weather of course. Have you ever done that before?”

Rose shook her head. “Looking through a telescope? I don’t think so.”

“You should come round to mine one time,” James suggested. “And I could show you the stars.”

“That sounds wonderful.” Rose replied, unable to believe that this was actually happening. She realized that the more time she spent with James, the more she was developing feelings for him, feelings that were more on a friendship level. She also noticed his very faint freckles particularly placed over his nose, and he had a quiff in his hair that was out of place, and it took everything in her not to mess about with it.

They spent the next couple of hours in the diner joking and laughing, and Rose was able to avoid telling James about anything that had happened between her, Alyssa and Tiffany. Rose was enjoying her time with James that much, that she didn’t realise how late it was until she looked out the window and saw that it was pouring down with rain and was getting dark.

“I should start heading back, even though I don’t want to. I’ve had a lovely time tonight, so thank you.” Rose said sadly, getting to her feet and pulling on her jacket.

“Thank you for your company.” James agreed, a relaxed smile on her face. “If it’s alright with you, maybe I can walk you home?”

Rose nodded, happy to do so. “That’d be nice.”

James led the way out of the diner, and reached for her hand, which Rose automatically took. “We might have to run.”

“Good job I don’t live to far away!”

“Ready?” James gripped her hand a little tighter to prepare her. “Run!”

Rose ran behind him, giggling as they got caught in the rain storm, trying there best to dodge the puddles so their shoes didn’t get wet. The Powell Estate soon loomed in front of them, and James ushered them under the shelter by the door, the both of them dripping wet.

“That was fun!” Rose grinned, exhilarated from the run. “Are you sure you don’t want to come on up so you can dry off for a bit? My Dad won’t mind.”

“Nah, I’ll be alright.” James assured her. “I just wanted to make sure that you got home safely, and not falling over on glass again. But thank you for tonight, I really enjoyed spending time with you.”

“Me too.” Rose agreed, a light blush forming across her face. “I hope that we can do it again sometime?” She wanted to know, and hoped that she didn’t come across to clingy.

“I’d love to.” James beamed. “I’d best get going before it gets too late. I’ll text you later.” He took a step back as though to leave, but to Rose’s surprise and delight, he leaned forwards and gently kissed her on the lips. Before they really got into it, James pulled away, the both of them panting for breath. “Bye!”

With that, James was gone. Rose was feeling giddy, and light-headed, and collapsed against the brick wall. James had kissed her, he’d properly kissed her. Back on cloud nine, Rose got back to the flat, and had a dreamy expression on her face with her back pressed against the door. Her father appeared at the other end of the hallway, and saw the look on her face.

He grinned. “How was your date?”

This time, Rose didn’t even bother denying it. “It was perfect.”


	8. Chapter 8

The day after her unofficial ‘date’, Rose was still buzzing from James kissing her. Even the looming threat of returning to school on Monday and dealing with Alyssa and Tiffany didn’t scare her anymore, she was so happy. And the fact that James wanted to meet again made it even better. On Monday morning, Rose got herself ready for school. She was a little anxious about running into certain people, but mentally she felt stronger knowing that she and James had got closer.

Her Dad dropped her off, wishing her luck and went to work as soon as Rose had walked through the doors. She held her head high as she grabbed the necessary books from her locker, and went to her registration room. She settled into her seat when the bell rang, and she felt her nerves intensify when Alyssa and Tiffany trailed into the room, casting disgusting glances over her. Rose refused to let them get to her, and she was determined to stand up for herself this time.

She copied the notes off the board when the bell rang again, indicating the first lesson of the day. English. It was her second favourite lesson to art, and luckily her form tutor was also her English teacher, so nobody needed to move.

“Good morning, everybody, I hope you all had a good weekend.” The teacher said and got to her feet, addressing her class. “Could you please get out your copies of Romeo and Juliet, and Alyssa, would you please read out one of Romeo’s famous passages? Only this time, less of the dramatics.”

“Of course.” Alyssa got to her feet, and cleared her throat. “’O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or if thou will not, be but sworn my love. And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.’” She mock bowed as some of the other students giggled applauded.

“Thank you Alyssa, for that dramatic reading.” The teacher responded dryly, to which Rose snorted under her breath. “Now, can anybody who’s actually read the passage please translate what’s been said?” There was a tense silence. “Anybody?”

One of Matt’s friends, Kai, raised his hand. “Isn’t it obvious? Juliet’s horny and is wanting to get freaky under the sheets with Romeo.”

The entire class apart from Rose laughed at his remark, whereas Rose rolled her eyes, annoyed with his response. It was then that Rose decided to speak up.

“I think you’ll find Kai, that Juliet is asking why Romeo is a member of the Montague family, and if you’d actually bothered to read it, then you’d know that the Montague and Capulet’s are enemies. She wants Romeo to go against his family for her love, and if he will not, then in order to be with him she’ll go against her family if he only tells her that he loves her. If you knew how to use your brain, then you might be able to understand that.”

The class then got rowdy by Rose’s response, and jeered at Kai who sank in his seat, embarrassed and enraged at being spoken to like an idiot. Even Alyssa and Tiffany seemed annoyed on Kai’s behalf, and Rose was grateful that there was a teacher presence. The teacher settled the glass back down, and cleared her throat to demand their attention. 

“Unless you want a class detention, then I suggest that you all settle down.” The teacher smiled when her technique worked. “Thank you. And thank you Rose, for that apt translation as always. It’s nice to see that somebody has taken time to properly read the story. Now, for the rest of the lesson, I’d like you to read the passages over the next ten pages, and then translate them in your workbooks. If you don’t finish it this lesson, then I’d like it completed for the next one. I’ll be quizzing you to make sure you’ve done it. You’ve got forty minutes, and I want silence so I can mark some papers. You may begin.”

Rose made a note in her homework journal to complete the unfinished passages, before she started to read through the book. The rest of the class worked in silence, some concentrating better than others. Rose was that engrossed in her own work, that she was startled when a folded up note was placed on her desk. Knowing that it was probably from Alyssa, she hesitantly opened it up.

It was more of a drawing than a note. The was a building, that was supposed to be a hospital, and a person on a stretcher (presumably Rose) being wheeled in. The speech bubble above her head read “I belong on the psych ward. They need to lock me in and throw away the key.”. Had she been given this a few weeks earlier, Rose would’ve become emotional, but now she was just angry. She made sure that the girls were looking as she screwed the piece of paper up into a ball, and threw it at their heads in response, before returning to her work.

She wasn’t going to let them get to her anymore.

~

The day seemed to pass fairly quickly, and Rose was more or less able to avoid the girls, even though they were in some of the same classes together. She met up with James at lunch, and the two sat together in the cafeteria.

“How’s your first day back been so far?” James asked over a mouthful of a turkey sandwich.

Rose shrugged her shoulders, not really giving much away. “It’s school. I think I pissed Kai off in English by bruising his ego in front of the others, so there’s that.”

“Yeah well, Kai needs taking down a peg or two.” James reassured her. “How did you bruise his ego?”

“We were asked to translate a passage from Romeo and Juliet, and Kai made a lewd remark, and I just snapped and gave the correct answer. It pisses me off when people don’t take school seriously, especially a private school. I know how hard it is to get into places like this, especially where I’m from, so I want to do my damned hardest so I don’t become a statistic.”

“A statistic?”

“I’m sure you’ve heard of them if you’re from an estate background. Kids my age typically drop out of school early, get pregnant and get hooked on drugs and alcohol. We don’t get chances like this. A lot of my old estate friends don’t even want to know me anymore since I’ve started coming here, they think I’m too good for them.”

“They’re just jealous that you’re going to go places, because you’re going to work your backside off.” James encouraged her. “You’ll be one of the rare ones that makes it in life.”

Rose blushed, fixated on a piece of her hair. “Thank you. Do you fancy coming to mine tonight? We could work on some homework together.”

“I’d love to, if your Dad doesn’t mind?”

“Nah, he won’t mind. He might ask you some questions, but it won’t be anything to intense.”

~

Pete was more than a little surprised when he got home, to see his daughter sat at the table, working on her homework with a boy around the same age of her sitting beside her.

“So, you must be Rose’s date then?” Pete teased, laughing at the whine coming from Rose as Tony sniggered from his spot on the sofa.

“Dad!” Rose whined, eyes wide with embarrassment. “I texted you ahead of time to let you know. And his name is James.”

“Nice to meet you James.” Pete reached over and shook Rose’s hand. “I’ll leave you both to it if you’re working on your homework. Tony, I hope you’ve done yours.” Tony groaned in defiance, and shut off his video game, grumbling as he got his own homework out, working by the coffee table. “Thank you. When it’s all done, I’ll order us a pizza.”

One hour later, both James and Rose had finished their homework, and were feeling rather pleased with themselves for finishing it so quickly. They shared and devoured a large pepperoni pizza, and then joined Tony in a round or two of his video games. At around nine that evening, Pete suggested that it was time James went home before it got to late, and Rose reluctantly agreed. She’d had so much fun, and she didn’t want that evening to end. She let James get his belongings, and followed him to the doorway of the flat, closing the door somewhat so that they could have some privacy.

“Tonight’s been fun.” James grinned, shrugging on his jacket.

“I hope my Dad and brother weren’t to overbearing.” Rose said, biting her lip nervously.

“Course not. They’re just overprotective and looking out for you, it’s only natural.” James reached out and hugged her suddenly, catching her off guard, but she gladly accepted the hug. When they pulled apart, but not fully letting go of her, he smiled down at her. “Is it OK if I kiss you again?”

Breathlessly, Rose nodded. “I’d like that.”

James kissed her for a second time, only this time, he was more precise, and wasn’t in a hurry. They got that into it, that he gently pressed her against the wall, deepening the kiss. They suddenly broke apart when Pete cleared his throat behind them, standing by the front door. It was like catching two naughty children doing something that they shouldn’t of done.

“I – I’ll see you tomorrow.” James stammered to Rose, before dashing off back to his house.

Rose was still blushing, even as she waved him off. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough.” Pete commented. “It was getting very quiet out here, and you hadn’t come back in. Looks like I was right to check. Is he your boyfriend, then?”

“No, Dad!” Rose insisted, though Pete rolled his eyes in disbelief. “I mean, he’s not asked me out, so no, he’s not. We’re good friends.” 

He snorted. “Looks like more than friends to me. Give it time, he’ll ask you, I’m sure. He’s besotted with you.”

Rose scoffed. “He’s not besotted with me.”

“Oh yeah? When you were playing video games with your brother, he could hardly take his eyes off you. Trust me, he’s besotted. Now would you come on in before you catch your death? It’s time you got ready for bed.”

~

The next day at school, in between classes, Rose had made a stop to the bathroom. She finished her business and went to wash her hands, her bag and blazer having been placed by the sink so that they didn’t get dirty. She washed her hands, humming to herself as she fixed her hair.

It was then that she got that unsettling feeling that she wasn’t alone.

And she wasn’t.

Rose jumped, startled to see Matt and Kai, blocking the exit. “What are you two doing in here? You know this is a girl’s bathroom, right? Don’t worry, I won’t tell anybody if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Shut the fuck up, you stupid bitch!” Kai snarled, a murderous expression on his face. He withdrew a small pocketknife, similar to the one that Alyssa had used on Rose not so long ago.

Rose swallowed audibly, her back pressed against the sink. It was that moment that the bell went. “K—Kai, I need to go. I’ll be late.” She tried to step forwards, but Kai took a step closer, gritting his teeth.

“You’re not going anywhere, bitch.” He growled. “Nobody makes a fool out of me and gets away with it.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Trigger Warning**  
> This chapter contains scenes of graphic rape and violence. View discretion is advised.

“Go and keep an eye out at the door.” Kai instructed Matt, who had no problem doing that. It was clear from the get go that he didn’t want to be involved. “I don’t want to be disturbed.” He waited until Matt had left the bathroom, and then turned to Rose, smiling wickedly. “And now for you, you little bitch.”

Rose, who had been gripped with fear, her knuckles turning white for clenching onto the sink so tightly, swallowed audibly. “W-what do you want?” 

She tried to edge away as he slowly stalked towards her, but there wasn’t much room for her to move between the sink and the corner of the bathroom. She was well and truly trapped. She had no weapon to defend herself, and she wasn’t properly skilled on any type of martial arts. If she was able to make it out of this situation unscathed, then she was definitely going to get some information on self defence classes.

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Kai smirked, now standing a few inches from her, and reached out to play with a loose strand of her hair. He chuckled when she jerked away. “Relax,” he cooed. “I’m just getting to know you better.”

“I don’t want to get to know you better.” Rose admitted, her voice trembling, her heart pounding in her throat rather than her chest. “I want to go.”

“That’s a shame.” Kai pouted mockingly, moving to stand directly in front of her. “I go through all of this trouble to arrange this – this meeting, and you don’t want to know.” He shrugged, and gently tugged on her tie, slowly pulling it out of the knot and tugging it off her. “I figured you’d be like this. But that’s OK … we have better things to be doing than talking.”

Rose unfortunately chose that moment to look down, and was disgusted to see Kai’s erection evidently on show. Now she understood what his intentions were, and there was nothing she could do to stop him. “If this is about what I said in English, then I’m really sorry alright? I was already in a pissy mood, and you know what teenagers are like. We get bad mood swings that we can’t control.” She was rambling, she was well aware of that, but it was a distraction technique. “Please Kai, you don’t have to do this.” Rose hated begging, but she was that frightened, she would do anything she could to stop him.

“Ssh, don’t cry.” Kai used his thumb to wipe the tears under her eyes, enjoy how she shuddered under his touch. “I won’t hurt you.” He paused and then snorted. “Not much anyway. I won’t hurt you unless you do everything that I’m about to tell you.”

~

What was Rose supposed to do? It’s not like she could leave very easily.

“Get down on your knees.”

She jumped at the coldness in his voice, and was startled by the demand. “W – what?”

“Don’t make me tell you again.” He warned, palming his erection. “You only get one chance. Get down on your knees.”

It was then that Rose chose her moment to run. Forgetting her belongings, Rose dashed past him and made her attempt. Unfortunately for her, Kai was much faster, and had anticipated that she would try and run. As she darted past him, Kai grabbed her around the waist, pinning her arms to her sides.

“No!” Rose shrieked, kicking her legs wildly. “Let go of me!” She bent forwards over his arm, and threw her head back into his face. He cried out in shock, and his grip on her slackened, so she tried again. Rose was running to the door once again, only to fall face first onto the cold, tiled floor.

Kai had hold of her ankles, and was dragging her back towards him. After a brief wrestle and struggle between them, he was able to straddle her hips and flip her onto her back, gripping her wrists painfully together in his hands. “I warned you, you bitch.” He hissed, the two of them panting heavily from the struggle. “Now you don’t get any chances.”

Rose screamed as Kai tore at shirt, tearing so hard that the buttons popped off and scattered across the floor. She tried her damned hardest to claw and scratch at him, but he was one step ahead when he used all of his weight to hold her down. She whimpered as he pulled off her bra, groping her breasts roughly, resulting in a pained cry when he sucked on each nipple, biting them in turn. Panic really set in when she saw him undo the belt on his trousers, and she knew what was coming. She squirmed and rolled onto her stomach, attempting to crawl away to safety, only to be pulled back.

“Oh no you don’t.” He growled. He pinned her down with his body, hooking an arm tightly around her neck to keep her still. Once he had her in a tight grip, Kai made sure that she could see the knife, which was poised dangerously close to her neck. “Try a stunt like that again, and I won’t hesitate to cut your fucking neck.” He shoved her head down onto the floor, and wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, keeping her still. Kai shifted his body so that he was lying on his side, her back against his chest, though he partially lay on top of her, so that she couldn’t move. He used his knee to nudge her legs apart, and that’s when she started to panic. “Just relax.” He cooed, brushing some loose hair out of her face. “The more you struggle, the more this’ll hurt.”

Rose shuddered and whimpered when Kai hitched up her skirt, and shoved his hand down her underwear. She cried out when he roughly inserted two fingers inside her, and wasn’t being very gentle about it.

“You’re so tight and wet already.” Kai whispered in her ear, getting more and more turned on. “All ready for me to fuck you.”

“Please don’t.” Rose begged, silent tears falling down her face.

“Ssh. You’ll enjoy it after a while, it’ll only hurt for a second.” Kai straddled her hips once more, and completely removed her underwear, spreading her legs more so that he had better access. He undid his trousers and freed his aching cock, massaging it in his hand as he took in the sight of her, terrified and completely immobile. She was his to do with as he pleased. And he couldn’t wait any longer to take her. He positioned himself, and in one quick movement, he’d buried himself to the hilt inside her, enjoying the wail of pain coming from her. Feeling momentarily generous, Kai gave her a couple of minutes to adjust, knowing that it’d be painful for her, before he set up a steady rhythm. “So fucking tight.” He growled, placing his hands on either side of her head, pounding deeper into her, the rhythm quickening.

Rose in that moment of pain and trauma, was experiencing an out-of-body experience. Physically she couldn’t feel what was happening to her, yet spiritually she could see what was occurring, and her heart broke at the sight.

Kai was clearly enjoying himself, and unbeknownst to Rose, he was secretly recording what he was doing to her. “You cunt feels so good, so tight and wet.” He groaned, slamming into her at a quicker pace, his cock slick with her blood. Thankfully, for her, it wasn’t long before he stilled, and Rose involuntarily shuddered as he came inside her and pulled out, feeling his seed sliding down her leg. He cleaned himself up, and took one more photo of the aftermath, before leaving the bathroom and leaving her alone.

~

Knowing that she was well and truly alone, Rose haphazardly pushed herself up to her hands and knees, retching. She somehow managed to crawl to the nearest toilet, and leant heavily against the bowl and violently threw up whatever contents were in her stomach. She used the door frame of the stall to pull herself unsteadily to her feet, trying her hardest not to breakdown. She shuffled to the sink where her bag was, and was grateful that she had a packet of wipes to clean the bloody mess between her legs, and pulled her underwear back up. There was no hope for her shirt, as the majority of the buttons had popped off when the shirt was torn, and she didn’t have anything else to wear. Rose turned to the sink, and splashed cold water on her face, trying to calm down when she caught her reflection. There were bags and dark circles under her eyes, showing the tell tale sign of the lack of sleep, and her mascara was smudged, her hair tussled and unkempt. Though her body ached in places that she was not familiar with, Rose winced as she bent down to get her blazer and pulled it on, wrapping it around her to cover her chest.

A little more secure in her blazer, Rose slid down the wall and drew her knees up to her chest.

She then curled up into a ball on the floor and began to cry.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, sorry about that. There'll be triggers in the next chapter though, so keep an eye out for those. :) Please let me know what you all think!

After her spontaneous picnic with James, Rose found it much easier to ignore the comments spreading throughout the school. And just as he predicted, they were soon dying down when they saw Rose wasn’t affected. Even Alyssa had started talking to her again, much to Tiffany’s dismay. It was clear to Rose that Tiffany didn’t particularly like her, and probably felt jealous that Alyssa was spending more time with Rose instead of her. 

But Rose didn’t have time for Tiffany’s pettiness.

It was the Friday before the party, and the girls were getting excited, talking animatedly about what they were going to wear and how they would style their hair. The plan was for the girls to come to Rose’s, and then they would get ready together. Throughout the day, the group chat was active, and Rose was rather disappointed to learn that James would not be attending.

Matt: Remember girls, all you need to bring are booze and boobs. ;)

Rose: How on Earth are we supposed to get booze? We’re underage.

Matt: Just flutter those pretty eyelashes of yours and do what you girls do best. Or if you’re too scared, then “borrow” some of your Daddy’s supply.

Rose balked at the idea. She knew her Dad occasionally drank, especially on Friday when work was over for the week. But the very notion of stealing from him was going a step too far, considering how much he trusted and relied on her to help him keep things afloat. She was torn. She wanted the approval of her friends, and wanted to be accepted by her peers. She had to make the right impression.

During the night, when Rose was sure everybody else was asleep, she snuck into the living room and over to the cabinet. She wasn’t too knowledgable about alcohol, but she grabbed the first two bottles she saw, making sure that it didn’t look too obvious that any had been taken. She closed the cabinet lid as quietly as she could, and tip toed back to her room, her heart racing as she shut the door. She looked at the bottles, and was pleased with herself that she’d got a bottle of vodka, and another of whiskey. Surely Matt would be happy with that?

Rose: Got the booze sorted.

Matt: Nice one! There’s hope for you yet, Rosie. See you tomorrow.

~

The girls were on their way, and Rose was anxious about them seeing where she lived. But it was too late to back out now. Her outfit was hanging on the outside of her wardrobe. It wasn’t too exciting, just a black miniskirt – which Pete was not happy about, and would only let it slide this one time – and a sparkly white top.

Rose was on edge as she waited for her friends, and was relieved when they finally knocked on the door. She bounded up from the sofa, and rushed to open it, greeting them with a smile. “Hi, guys! Come on in.”

“Oh,” Alyssa murmured, embarrassed, and disgusted. “You really live here?”

“Uh, yeah? What’s wrong with where I live? Not everybody lives in a mansion like you.”

“There’s no need to get snippety with me!” Alyssa huffed, shoving past her and into Rose’s room. “We’ve got about two hours to get ready, and I’ve got so much to do.” She dumped her bag on Rose’s bed, looking around the barely decorated room.   
The walls were a shade of lilac, with some areas peeling and covered in damp spots. There was a desk and a bookcase in the corner, where a lot of Rose’s art supplies and schoolbooks were kept. There were also knick-knacks, photographs and memorabilia from her childhood scattered, which is what Rose loved about her room. This was her comfort zone, and she was grateful that she had her own space (whereas Tony slept on an air mattress in their Dad’s room).

Tiffany didn’t have much to say, and Rose wasn’t in the mood to argue.

“Are we going to get ready or are we not bothering?” Rose wanted to know, the tension in the room so thick that you could cut it with a knife.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re getting ready. Thank God I showered before I came here,” Alyssa quipped, flicking off imaginary dust off her sleeve. “I’d be freezing with all the damp in here.”

Rose bit her tongue to stop herself from arguing back. No, it wasn’t the most glamorous of homes, but her Dad worked two jobs just so that he and his children were comfortable and had the most basic of necessities. Alyssa of course had been spoiled by her Daddy, who she learnt from James was a top defence lawyer, so she had no idea of the value of money. As the other two argued about what music to put on, Rose grabbed her outfit and went to get changed in the bathroom. Hopefully she wouldn’t regret tonight.

~

Finally, finally, almost two hours later, the girls were ready to go. Well, Rose and Tiffany had been waiting for ages, Alyssa was too indecisive as to which of three outfits to wear. She went with her designer black dress and matching heels, her long brunette hair had been curled. Out of the three of them, she wore the most make up, and at a glance you could say she’d look at least seventeen rather than fifteen. Tiffany wasn’t that bothered about dressing up, and had donned some denim shorts, flats and a plan t-shirt, with her red hair tied back into a high ponytail. Since she couldn’t afford her own, Rose wasn’t going to bother with make up either, but Alyssa insisted that she borrow some of hers, and even offered to help her do it. Her hair was styled so that she had two French braids on pinned either side of her head, the rest of her blonde hair loose.

“I’ll see you later, Dad.” Rose called, leaving with the girls.

“I want you back by ten o’clock,” he reminded her, drying his hands off with a tea towel. “No later. Otherwise you’re grounded.”

“You’ve got it.”

~

The party wasn’t as ‘live’ as Rose was expecting it to be. For starters, there were about thirty or more other people, and they were chatting animatedly amongst one another, drinks in hand. Some music was pumping throughout the rooms, and the lights were dimly lit, creating a rather calm atmosphere. The door swung open, and Matt greeted them with a wolf whistle.

“Come on in, ladies,” he all but purred, moving aside to let them in, playfully slapping Rose on her bum. He held his hands up in surrender before she could retort. “The bar’s on the left over there, so help yourself to some drinks. There’s some mocktails if you’re not interested in the good stuff. Enjoy yourselves.”

Rose followed the other two to the bar, and gave her bottles that she’d stolen to the bartender. She remembered James’s warning about somebody spiking the drinks, and asked for some sparkling water. To be honest, Rose found the party quite dull, and not very entertaining. At around eight o’clock, there was Rose, Alyssa and Tiffany, Matt, and two guys that she didn’t know. The music was starting to die down, and the six of them were relaxing the in the living room, partially drunk, apart from Rose.

“I’m bored.” Tiffany whined, after several moments of awkward silence.

“We could play a game.” Alyssa suggested, her eyes sparkling with mischief. 

“What kind of game?” Rose wanted to know, not liking this idea at all. She didn’t want to be put in a situation where she was vulnerable.

“We could play Twister.” Matt grinned, winking at Rose.

“No way, we’re not playing a game where you’ve got opportunity to cop a feel!” Tiffany snorted. “How about we play ‘truth or dare’? And if you have done something, then you have to take a shot.” The group murmured in agreement, and they moved to sit in a circle on the ground. To Rose’s dismay, Matt sat next to her, with Tiffany on her other side. Tiffany pulled out a bottle of pure vodka, and filled everybody’s glasses halfway. “To make this fair, let’s spin a bottle.” She and Alyssa exchanged a smirk as Tiffany span the bottle, the tension thick as it finally landed on Matt. “Alright Mr Logan, truth or dare?”

Matt smirked, leaning backwards, totally relaxed. “Dare.”

“I dare you to take off your shirt.”

Matt scoffed, and quickly whipped off his shirt, showing off his six pack. “Done.” Then it was his turn to spin the bottle, and it landed on Alyssa. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to remove your underwear.”

Nobody dared to breathe in that moment, thinking that Matt had gone a step too far. But to everybody’s surprise, Alyssa took a swig of her vodka, and swiftly removed her lacy black underwear, throwing it in Matt’s face with a giggle.

“Too easy.” Alyssa grinned, as Matt bundled up her underwear and stuff it in his pocket. “Are we going to get something interesting before it turns into strip poker? My turn to spin.” She span the bottle, and it landed on Rose. “Truth or dare?”

“Truth.” Rose answered without hesitation. She wasn’t up for doing dares, knowing how dangerous they could get, especially with alcohol involved.

“Is it true that your Mum’s a psycho?”

Rose’s head snapped up, startled by the question. She’d only told James about her Mum, how the hell did Alyssa know? “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You shouldn’t leave private letters lying around.” Alyssa pulled a letter out of her purse, and passed it around to the group. When it reached Rose, she realised that it was a visitation letter that her Mum had sent her, asking to come and see her. “Is it true? Is your Mum mentally fucked up?”

“She’s not mentally fucked up, and she’s not a psycho!” Rose growled, her cheeks burning. Even though Rose hadn’t seen her Mum in years, she still defended her. “Some people just can’t cope, and they need help. My Mum couldn’t cope, there’s nothing wrong or weird about that.”

“If your Mum’s a psycho, then does that mean you’re a psycho?” Tiffany asked, smirking cruelly. “Would explain a lot of things.”

“I’m not like my Mum. Believe it or not I’m completely normal. It’s you lot who are psycho. I’ve had enough of this bullshit. I’m going home.” Rose went to get up, but yelped when Matt seized her wrist and pulled her back down to the floor. “Let go!”

“Chill out, Rose, we’re only teasing.” Matt said, trying to calm her down. “We’re just having some fun, Alyssa was just messing with you. Right Alyssa?”

“Right. There’s no need to be so dramatic.” Alyssa said with an eye-roll. She then span the bottle again, which landed on Matt again. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to make out with Rose.”

“No way!” Rose protested, trying to squirm away. Before she could react however, Matt had wound his arm around the small of her back, pressing her against him and proceeded to make out with her. She pushed against him, her skin crawling with disgust as he forced his tongue in her mouth. The others were watching in shock, surprised at how aggressive Matt really was. Rose felt as though she was about to throw up, and bit down hard on his tongue, hard enough to draw back.

Matt cried out in pain, and reacted by slapping her hard across the face. “You bitch!”

Trembling and panting heavily, Rose scrambled to her feet and dashed out of the house, needing fresh air. She fumbled for her phone and texted her Dad, asking for a ride. She needed to get out of there. Now.

“Are you alright?”

Rose jumped back, not expecting Alyssa to show concern in the slightest. “What do you think? None of you did anything to stop him! He’s crazy! I don’t care how much he’d been drinking, there’s no excuse for what he just did. Dare or not! I’m going home, I’ve had enough.”

Pete tried asking her how the party was, concerned with how quiet she was, but Rose was in no mood to talk. When they arrived home, Rose went to her room and had a long, cold shower, attempting to calm down. She decided then and there that she needed to keep her distance from her so called “friends”, since they put her in a situation that could’ve easily got out of hand. After changing into her pyjamas, she muted the group chat, not wanting to see whatever crap they were writing. She climbed into bed when her phone pinged, alerting her to a message.

James: Is everything alright? Matt’s been blowing up my phone and said that he wants to talk to you, but his messages aren’t getting through.

Rose: I’ve been better. Something happened at the party, and I’d rather not talk to any of them right now.

James: What happened at the party? What did Matt do?

Rose didn’t want to tell him at first, and initially hesitated. But something told her that she could trust him, and decided to tell him.

Rose: We were playing ‘truth or dare’, there was alcohol involved. Alyssa dared Matt to make out with me, and he got a big aggressive. He didn’t grope me or anything, but he was getting too into it, and I bit him. Then he slapped me.

James: Jesus Christ! I’m so sorry he did that to you. That THEY did that to you and put you in that position. Matt can be an ass sometimes, but he’s a good guy. I’ll talk to him.

Rose doubted that James could get through to Matt, but she was willing to give James a chance.

~

Rose dreaded going into school the following week, and after checking in with the group chat, she wanted to avoid going in altogether. Matt was calling her frigid for not readily responding when he made out with her, and Tiffany had gone back to calling her a slut. There was nothing new there. The whispers and passing comments in the corridor were becoming more frequent, and it was getting harder to ignore them. It was worse in her English class, since her so called “friends” from the group chat were all in that class, and they all sat together. Rose used to sit with them too, but now she sat on the other side of the classroom. She thought it was best to keep her distance, and to focus more on her studies.

She’d also seriously been considering visiting her Mum for the first time, but was still hesitant. The fear of being in a medical environment still terrified her, and she still had nightmares and flashbacks to the last visit with her Mum.

Seven years earlier …

Rose was seven years old, her little brother was only four, so he didn’t really understand what was going on. The last time Rose had seen her Mum was just over a month ago, and it wasn’t pretty. She’d had a full on meltdown over a broken vase, and she wouldn’t stop screaming. Pete had told Rose to hide under the dining table, hugging Tony to her, covering his ears to block out the screams. Pete was doing his upmost best to calm his wife down, but protecting his children was his priority, and he’d locked Jackie in the kitchen as he called for an ambulance.

Rose remained under the table, but she was able to see her mother being removed from the home kicking and screaming, restrained in a straightjacket. The next time Rose saw her, Pete had taken her to the hospital. She could visual it vividly as Pete led her down the corridor, holding onto her hand tightly. There were nurses and doctors milling about, some pushing carts with medicine and syringes, others leading patients to there destinations. They eventually came across to a little side room, and Pete opened the door. 

Jackie was laying immobile in the bed, and Rose could see her wrists were cuffed to the railings. Even though she was seven years old, Rose could tell that her mother was pumped with drugs to make her woozy and “feel good”. Rose stayed by the door as Pete went to greet his wife, and leaned over to kiss her on the forehead.

“Hello, honey. I’ve brought somebody here to see you.” Pete looked up and smiled at Rose reassuringly, beckoning her closer. “Sweetheart, it’s OK, don’t be scared. She’s still your Mum, she’s in a place that’ll make her feel better. Come on.”

Rose shuffled over cautiously, shoving some drawings she and Tony had done for her on the side table. “Hi Mummy.” She whispered, her heart pounding in her throat. “I love you, and I miss you.”

Despite being drunk on medication, Jackie lifted her head a little, and smiled sleepily at her daughter. “Is that my little girl? I’m sorry for scaring you, I’ll get better though, I promise. Can I have a hug? I’d give you one myself but I can’t move my hands.” Rose hid behind her father’s legs, shaking her head. “Give me a hug, Rose!”

Rose whimpered, the rise in Jackie’s voice scaring her.

“Honey, don’t do that,” Pete pleaded, gently pushing Rose out of harms way. “You’re scaring her, stop it.”

Jackie became more agitated, demanding that they leave. Pete quickly scooped up Rose in his arms and encouraged her to close her eyes and covering her ears as Jackie started to thrash and scream. He pressed the emergency button so that the nurses would attend to her. Pete carried his distraught daughter out of the hospital and back home, and since that traumatic visit, Rose had not been back.

Maybe next time would be different.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Trigger Warning**  
> Some drug use is mentioned later in the chapter.

Rose was in and out of consciousness, the pain in her chest to overwhelming to comprehend. It wasn’t long though before she realised that she was alone. Somehow her brother had found her, and he was panicking.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Rose! What the hell happened?” Tony swore, shrugging his jacket off and applying pressure to her stomach, wincing as she cried out. “Sorry, sorry! Who was that kid that followed us? What was his name?”

“No questions, not now.” Rose gasped, struggling to stay awake. “Help me sit up?” With some difficulty, Tony managed to haul his sister into a sitting position, resting her against a wooden crate. She strained to get her money out of her coat pocket, and handed it to Tony. “Go to the chemist. Get some bandages, large plasters and some sort of antiseptic, and don’t dawdle like you usually do.”

“What the hell? You need to go to the hospital, not the damned chemist! Fuck it, I’m calling Dad.”

“NO!” Rose snatched his phone out of his hand. “We’re not telling Dad about this, no way! I’ll be fine once this has been patched up, trust me. Please Tony, he’s under so much pressure as it is, and I really don’t want him to be responsible for having a mental breakdown like Mum. I know you’re scared, just trust me, get the stuff from the chemist, and be quick.”

Tony really didn’t think that this was a good idea, keeping yet another secret from their Dad, but Rose was as stubborn as stubborn could get, and it’d be pointless arguing with her now. He reluctantly took the money, and ran to the chemist, his heart pounding in his throat. The bell to the shop dinged when he opened the door, and dashed to the first aid shelf, and scanned for the required items. In his moment of panic, he grabbed some saline packets to clean the wounds, and the large dressing plasters and bandages, quickly paying for them and running back out to his sister, just as it was beginning to rain.

“I got what I could.” He panted, dropping to his knees beside her. “Tell me what to do?”

Rose was on the verge of passing out again, and was struggling to keep her eyes open. “You – you need to clean the wound first, get it as c-clean as possible. Then p-put the plasters on, and t-then the bandages.” Her teeth were chattering, and it wasn’t because she was cold, she was going into shock. “I don’t suppose you have a drink on you?”

Luckily for her, he had a bottle of water in his jacket pocket, which he removed so that he could see the wounds. He could feel her embarrassment when he read the words ‘I am a slut’ and ‘I am a whore’ carved on her chest just above her thighs. It was starting to make sense who had done this to her, and he was pissed. He was more than pissed. He was angry.

With the wipes he’d purchased he poured on some of the saline solution. “I’m really really sorry about this.” Tony then took a deep breath, and started to wipe away the blood, and the closer he got to the wound, the more she cried out and whimpered. “Sorry – I’m trying to be gentle.”

“I know, I know.” Rose gasped breathlessly, turning a ghostly shade of white. “How did you find me?”

“I heard you screaming.”

“Oh.” Rose was silent for a couple of minutes, wincing every now and again as her stomach twitched. “I used to do this to you when you were little, fixing you up if you got cuts and scrapes, which happened a lot. Never thought you’d have to do it for me.”

“Let’s hope that this is a one time thing.” Tony joked, now putting the plasters over the wounds, making sure that they were properly dressed. The final step was to wrap the bandages around her, which was soon completed. “Right, that’s looking a lot better. Do you think we can stand?” As well as being stubborn, Rose could also be very determined when she wanted to be. Gritting her teeth and pushing through the pain, she growled as she lifted herself to her feet, leaning heavily against the brick wall. “That’s good, you’re doing well.” Tony encouraged her, keeping his hands out to catch her if she fell. “Just remember to focus on moving your feet forwards and breathe, we’re not in any rush.”

Rose tried her best, moving each foot forwards, but at the same time, taking it slowly. She felt incredibly woozy, and the thought of lying in her bed sounded like heaven. It felt like forever – no doubt it actually was – and a day to get up to the fourth floor, with Rose tripping and stumbling on the steps as they did so. But finally, finally they made it to their flat. Exhausted, Rose collapsed onto her bed, wanting nothing more than to sleep.

“What are we going to tell Dad?” Tony asked, worrying his bottom lip.

“Good question. Um, let’s just tell him that I tripped and fell on some glass when I was picking you up. He doesn’t need to know the real reason.”

“And what is the real reason?”

“Alyssa really doesn’t like me.” Rose said, which was the understatement of the century. “And she thinks that I’m the psycho.”

“What a loser.” Tony scoffed. “She’s seriously messed up in the head. Do you want me to get you some painkillers?”

Rose nodded, grateful that he was actually helping. “Yes please, and thank you Tony. Seriously, thank you.” Whilst he was gone, Rose changed with difficulty into some more comfortable clothing, and got under the covers. She accepted the painkillers off Tony and swallowed them whole, not bothering with any water. “I’m gonna get some sleep. G’night little man, love you.”

~

Why don’t you just top yourself?

You’ll always be a slut. You’ll always be a whore, and you’ll always be worthless.

I’ve given you a head start to topping yourself, the rest is up to you.

“Sweetheart? Can you hear me?”

Rose groaned, annoyed at being disturbed from her sleep. She opened her eyes, wincing as the light invaded them. “Yeah, I can hear you. What time is it?”

“Don’t try and sit up. It’s a little after ten, I just got in and Tony told me what happened. How are you feeling?”

“Like shit.”

“For once I’ll let that one slide.” Pete chuckled, brushing her hair out of her face. “Good job Tony was there to help you out. You’ll be having the rest of this week off, just so you know. I’ve left you some more painkillers on the side and some water, you’ll probably need them during the night. I’ll check on you in the morning. Goodnight love.”

“Mhm, night.”

~

I’ve given you a head start to topping yourself, the rest is up to you.  
Being alone inside the flat wasn’t doing Rose any good mentally. The cruel comments and remarks were constantly going around in her head and there was no off switch. She needed something for the mental torture, she couldn’t do it alone. Living on the estate, Rose new certain people that had access to things that would help her forget.

Even though her Dad had forbidden her to leave the house in her “condition”, Rose couldn’t stay in the house much longer. She zipped up her hoodie and went to the shady parts of the estate that people tended to avoid, and caught sight of a dealer lurking on the corner.

“Never thought I’d see you of all people around here.” The man smirked, his hands in his pockets. “What is it you want?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I want drugs.”

“I know that dummy.” He said rolling his eyes. “What do you want them for?”

“I want to forget. I want to forget shit that’s happened in my life. Is that a good enough answer?” Rose huffed, wanting this to be over and done with. “Are you gonna help me or not?”

He pulled out a small, clear plastic bag, which contained four little pills. “I have some benzodiazepines here, they’re good for memory loss. They’ll help you forget. Since you’re a newbie, first one’s on the house. If you want more, I can do a bottle of thirty for thirty quid. If you want something stronger then it’ll be more expensive. Here’s my number if you need me again.” He passed her a card with his number scribbled on. “I hope I won’t see you again, you’re too good for this shit Tyler.”

Rose nodded, accepting the little bag and pocketing it. “Thanks.”

~

Back in the confined safety of the flat, Rose shrugged off her coat and hung it on the coat rack, quickly getting her stash out of her pocket. She was more than relieved that she was alone, and didn’t have her Dad watching her every move.

She went to her room, where she already had a bottle of water on her bedside table. She sat on the edge of the bed, and with shaking hands she pulled out one of the pills, debating whether or not she should do this. She knew, morally that she shouldn’t, but right now her emotions were running riot, and she just wanted the noise to stop.

Taking a deep breath, Rose uncapped the bottle of water and threw the pill into the back of her mouth, swallowing it in one gulp. It was done. She put the bag with the rest of the pills in a tin where she kept some of her most prized possessions, and made sure it was hidden inside another bag. Stashing the tin back under the bed for safe keeping, Rose tried her best to calm down, and hoped to God that she wouldn’t need anymore.

Her heart pounding under the realization of what she’d just done, Rose lay down on the bed, curling into a ball and started to cry.

She was falling apart.


End file.
